4 actions to tackle Coronavirus impact in tourism

European Commissioner for Internal Markets Thierry Breton told a French television station that the estimated financial toll of the virus on the tourism industry in Europe amounts to roughly € 1 billion per month.

But globally, what are the initiatives undertaken by policy makers and destinations to tackle the Coronavirus effect in the tourism sector?

The Municipality of Treviso (Italy) provided some tourist facilitations among which the suspension of the tourist-tax until next June. Also in Italy, the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region will offer the skipass for free to those who will spend the night in one of the accommodation facilities in their mountains.

The government of Indonesia decided to draw up a stimulus package worth at least € 750 million in subsidies, tax cuts and other benefit programs in the major tourist destinations. As reported by Jakarta Globe, the government will also set aside € 6,3 million in subsidies for airlines and travel agencies, allowing them to discount tickets or travel packages for foreign tourists. Additional resources will be dedicated to extra funding for tourism promotion, events and for social media influencers to attract back tourists.

As reported by Newsroom, Australians are being targeted by Tourism New Zealand (TNZ) campaigns aimed to boost arrivals during the Covid-19 outbreak. The organization received a € 8,9 million funding from the government to ease the pressure on the tourism industry and Australia was the market that offered the most opportunities in the short term. A winter ski campaign has already been launched to attract Australian beginners into the off-peak regions, as well as showcasing alternative activities including dog sledding.

New York Times reports the marketing initiative from Visit Anchorage, the tourism marketing organization for Alaska’s largest city. This action is focused on travellers from Australia, Northern Europe and the continental United States and the aim is to convince travellers who were going to China to think of Alaska as a temporary replacement for a trip.

At Twissen we observed that the initiatives to tackle the virus contingency are designed with a short-term purpose. By consequence, as things stand at present, policy makers and destination managers forecast the end of the Coronavirus emergency late this spring. Actions that address specific target of tourists and go in-depth on their requirements have demonstrated more chance to succeed.

Francesco Redi

President and founder at Twissen. Manager in Local Development, Tourism Policies,  EU Funds. He cooperates with several European universities, public bodies, development agencies, DMOs and enterprises.