After being the epicentre of the coronavirus pandemic at the beginning of the year, China, and the rest of Asia, has gradually seen daily activity getting back to relative normality. One sector, however, is likely to take longer to recover: the travel industry.
International travel has plummeted, with many border restrictions still in place across the globe. According to the World Tourism Organization, during Q1 of 2020, the pandemic caused a 35% decrease in tourist arrivals in the Asia Pacific region. Looking ahead it predicts that the crisis could cause a global annual decline of “between 60% and 80%”.
Across the Asian continent, each country applies its own policies for tourists. Some countries impose a quarantine on authorised foreign visitors, 14 days for Vietnam, China or India.
Some countries, like Thailand, are closed to most people, except some workers and students who must supply a certificate of health before entry. Other countries have completely stopped issuing visas to travellers coming from heavily-impacted COVID-19 areas, such as Europe or the US.
Given the complex situation regarding who can travel where, on top of concerns about health and safety, we ask what are the challenges in relaunching Asia’s travel industry? How keen are tourists to start flying long haul again? And where does Asia's revival fit in the global recovery of travel and tourism?
Euronews has assembled a panel of experts to answer these questions and more. Join them and Euronews' Damon Embling on 16 July at 10:30 CET for a live debate. Follow it on this page.
- Jane Sun, Chief Executive Officer of Trip.com,
- Kimarli Fernando, Chairperson of Sri Lanka Tourism
- Filip Cornelis, Director of Aviation at the EU Commission.
Loading…
