Clearly, the pandemic has had consequences for countries and businesses that rely heavily on the influx of tourists. Destination marketing has changed. Travelers' needs and expectations have changed. We can forget all the research on consumer travel behavior that was done before the pandemic. But it's not over yet, and the effects are still being felt and will continue to influence travel behavior.
While countries tried to soften the blow during the pandemic by boosting domestic tourism and keeping businesses afloat, now that the restrictions are mostly gone, they have a chance to build more resilient tourism and start from scratch. At least that was the premise. To achieve this, each country is taking a different approach.
In many Asian countries, they have introduced travel subsidies and tax relief and launched advertising campaigns to boost domestic tourism. In Slovenia, for example, we promoted domestic tourism by giving away so-called tourism vouchers worth €200 per citizen. You could redeem these vouchers for accommodation at any provider that accepted them (which most did).
When I talked to people who work in tourism, I got mixed responses. Some of them said they were very happy because otherwise there would be empty places and the government's financial help mitigates the effects of the pandemic. Others said they weren't happy at all because of the quality of guests they had. These were businesses that were used to receiving foreign tourists, who usually spend more than local tourists. They mention that guests don't spend nearly enough on extras like food, drinks, and additional activities at the destination. And we know that additional services in tourism bring big profit margins. It's a different story in Asia, where countries like China and Japan relied heavily on domestic tourism even before the pandemic.
Recently, Hong Kong has finally opened its borders and is ready to revive its tourism economy. Their strategy is to give away 500,000 airline tickets worth more than 250 million euros and 1 million vouchers to spend on food, drinks, transportation, hotels, retail and attractions.
Following Hong Kong's lead, Macau has also joined the campaign, distributing 120,000 free airline tickets this year, as well as additional vouchers that can be spent at local travel agencies.
It's necessary to get tourism back on its feet, as it provides a large number of jobs in many countries and generates a large share of GDP. But these are all very short-term solutions that won't create a resilient tourism ecosystem, but will only patch the holes created by the pandemic. And most likely create new holes.
After that, we'll be back to normal, popular tourist attractions will be crowded again, and signs saying 'tourists go home' will reappear. Here I'm pessimistic that tourism will actually change after the pandemic.
To me, this kind of effort conveys the message: just come, it doesn't matter how much you spend, how much we get from you, or how much you actually value our destination. I wonder what kind of tourism we can expect when destinations start fighting over who can offer the biggest discount to get us to visit. Is that going to become the new norm?
On another spectrum, some countries, most notably Europe, employ various strategies to attract not only travelers but also citizens. Over 60 countries right now already offer digital nomad visas and are trying to create a better environment to attract a different type of traveler - digital nomads and people benefiting from remote work. South-European countries seem to currently be the strongest in their promotional efforts.
The first examples invite people to come to the country for a short time, with no intention of staying long. It's an invitation to fast-paced tourism. Perhaps the tourists visit the country only because they can do it now for free. They are also firing shots at random tourists without any segmentation and personalization.
The second example is countries that have a specific target segment in mind - remote workers, digital nomads and knowledge workers. Another type of traveler - with the potential to become a citizen. The one who stays longer in the destination and becomes more deeply immersed in the culture just by staying there for a long time.
In addition to the economic impact digital nomads can create at their destination, there are numerous other benefits. Governments can encourage the mixing of locals with digital nomads who bring new skills and new worldviews. They can encourage closer collaboration with local communities. As some destinations, especially in rural areas and southeastern Europe (European Commission, 2022), experience a brain drain, digital nomads could be the new brain gain.
As remote work becomes a privilege for more and more people, global mobilities will change, and with them the nature of travel. This segment has the potential to build the resilient tourism we all want, and countries should seize this opportunity. It's a much longer-term strategy, but I believe it can yield better results. Not just for the tourism sector, but for the economy as a whole.