Asia-Pacific’s travel industry will take longer to recover from the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the new “Travel Readiness Index 2022” by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the UK’s media research and analysis unit. home group, found.
The study noted that tourism is critical to Asia, with countries in the region spending on average more than 10% of GDP.
For tourism services, it added, the negative economic impact of Covid-19 has deepened under the extensive border closures and strict travel and quarantine regimes over the past two years.
Reopening borders and attracting international tourists will be top priorities, the EIU said, adding that expanding the use of vaccines and reducing the lethality of Covid-19 will “provide opportunities” for the region.
Malaysia, Singapore are better prepared
However, countries differ widely in their readiness to reopen. Fiji, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Maldives top the index of the most suitable destinations to revive the tourism-hit tourism industry, according to the study, adding that Singapore, Australia, Bangladesh, New Zealand, Nepal and Cambodia also made the top 10 The list of top destinations is best for tourism recovery.
The top-performing companies in the index have eased visa and entry restrictions since 2021 or earlier, the EIU said.
On the downside, Hong Kong has the worst outlook due to continued restrictive border policies. According to the index, the SARs are followed by Brunei, Bhutan, Taiwan, Samoa, Vanuatu, Japan, China and Laos as the worst travel destinations currently.
Thailand, India, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Vietnam, Mongolia and South Korea are ranked in the middle of the travel situation.
Despite opening-up measures, Vietnam still lags behind
Still, according to the index, Vietnam is still far behind several Southeast Asian countries in terms of tourism recovery prospects. The country’s final score in the index was 4.08 out of 10, behind Malaysia (2.15), Singapore (2.45), Cambodia (3.25), Thailand (3.3), the Philippines (3.75) and Indonesia (4.05).
With the exception of Fiji and Maldives, tourism in the region may not return to pre-pandemic levels until at least 2024, largely due to China’s restrictive border policies, the EIU said. Of the 28 economies in the index, 13 relied on China as their largest source of tourists before the pandemic.
Other recovery risks highlighted by the think tank include new coronavirus variants, higher oil prices and soaring inflation. Additionally, airlines remain cautious about delaying flights to their schedules given their depleted balance sheets and current volatile jet fuel prices.
Thailand’s beaches are largely empty so far Asia-Pacific’s travel industry will take longer to recover from the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the new “Travel Readiness Index 2022” by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the UK’s media research and analysis unit. home group, found. The study noted that tourism is critical to Asia, with countries in the region spending on average more than 10% of GDP. For travel services, the negative economic impact of Covid-19 amid widespread border closures and strict travel and…
Asia-Pacific’s travel industry will take longer to recover from the adverse effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the new “Travel Readiness Index 2022” by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), the UK’s media research and analysis unit. home group, found.
The study noted that tourism is critical to Asia, with countries in the region spending on average more than 10% of GDP.
For tourism services, it added, the negative economic impact of Covid-19 has deepened under the extensive border closures and strict travel and quarantine regimes over the past two years.
Reopening borders and attracting international tourists will be top priorities, the EIU said, adding that expanding the use of vaccines and reducing the lethality of Covid-19 will “provide opportunities” for the region.
Malaysia, Singapore are better prepared
However, countries differ widely in their readiness to reopen. Fiji, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Maldives top the index of the most suitable destinations to revive the tourism-hit tourism industry, according to the study, adding that Singapore, Australia, Bangladesh, New Zealand, Nepal and Cambodia also made the top 10 The list of top destinations is best for tourism recovery.
The top-performing companies in the index have eased visa and entry restrictions since 2021 or earlier, the EIU said.
On the downside, Hong Kong has the worst outlook due to continued restrictive border policies. According to the index, the SARs are followed by Brunei, Bhutan, Taiwan, Samoa, Vanuatu, Japan, China and Laos as the worst travel destinations currently.
Thailand, India, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Vietnam, Mongolia and South Korea are ranked in the middle of the travel situation.
Despite opening-up measures, Vietnam still lags behind
Still, according to the index, Vietnam is still far behind several Southeast Asian countries in terms of tourism recovery prospects. The country’s final score in the index was 4.08 out of 10, behind Malaysia (2.15), Singapore (2.45), Cambodia (3.25), Thailand (3.3), the Philippines (3.75) and Indonesia (4.05).
With the exception of Fiji and Maldives, tourism in the region may not return to pre-pandemic levels until at least 2024, largely due to China’s restrictive border policies, the EIU said. Of the 28 economies in the index, 13 relied on China as their largest source of tourists before the pandemic.
Other recovery risks highlighted by the think tank include new coronavirus variants, higher oil prices and soaring inflation. Additionally, airlines remain cautious about delaying flights to their schedules given their depleted balance sheets and current volatile jet fuel prices.
