Interrupted dreams: memories and emotions of travel experiences during Covid-19 breakthrough.

Abstract

This work aims to understand the experiences of tourists who traveled during the Covid-19 breakthrough, exploring the emotions and memories in a chronological context of the trip. The methodological approach is qualitative, based on 21 in-depth interviews with Brazilian tourists who described their trips made between January and March 2020, encompassing experiences in all continents. The data analysis was based on grounded theory, through open, axial, and selective coding. The results show the particularities lived in travel experiences during the pandemic, the emotions that permeate happiness, fear, frustration, ten-sion, and relief. In addition, it discusses how tourists got involved with travel planning, were pressured socially, and made risk assessments before traveling. During the trip, unexpected experiences generated the transfiguration of the trip previously planned. The precarious service and helplessness, as well as self-protection behavior (or not) were listed. Finally, tourists reflected on the trip and its consequences. The contributions involve the classification of studies on tourism and Covid-19, and the proposal of a theoretical framework that repre-sents the emotions and memories of travelers before, during, and after the travel experience.