Preparedness to open tourism activities during COVID-19 pandemic APAC 2020, by region

Thai respondents were confident of their country’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, with 82 percent stating that Thailand was well-prepared to resume tourism and leisure activities following the COVID-19-induced lockdown. On the other hand, less than half of respondents in the Philippines agreed with this sentiment when analyzing their own country.

Easing into normality

There is no doubt that the tourism industry was greatly hit by the outbreak of the coronavirus. The effects of the outbreak were felt during early 2020 and continued throughout the entire year. With many countries across the Asia Pacific region dependent on tourism for employment and income, it is not surprising that citizens were eager to resume tourism activities. As well as re-opening tourism and leisure activities, the majority of respondents agreed that they would travel to distant countries within a year of the easing of lockdown measures. Additionally, close to one hundred percent of respondents in China and New Zealand stated they would travel domestically within one year of lockdown measures lifting.

Hit on APAC markets

The lockdown measures imposed in many countries across the Asia Pacific region impacted negatively on the varying economies throughout the region. As a result of the outbreak, many countries decided to impose a total or partial closing of their borders. Southeast Asian countries, which are among those heavily reliant on tourism, experienced little or negative GDP growth in 2020. Furthermore, other powerful economies throughout the region were also forecast to show negative GDP growths by the end of 2020.