The Impacts of Covid-19 on the Tourism Sector: Changes, Adaptations and Challenges

Abstract

This exploratory study charts the transformation of the tourism sector caused by the COVID-19 crisis. The article dissects five key domains of industry transformation: accelerated digitalisation, business model flexibility, human resources, travel restrictions, and risk perception and crisis management. It delineates the industry's changes, adaptations, and associated challenges in each domain. A review and content analysis of 240 publicly available online documents was conducted. The results provide managerial implications and avenues for future research in tourism, including the hybridisation of tourism products, transformation of the service encounter style, adaptation to a shifting travel mode, and increased risk awareness and preparedness.