Crises in tourism: travel agencies' perceptions of the Covid-19 pandemic crisis
Abstract
Purpose: The tourism industry is vulnerable to numerous crises such as natural disasters, terrorism, epidemics, and pandemics. Tourist destinations and tourism companies must be prepared to fight a crisis and develop recovery strategies.
The present work identifies, from the perceptions of travel and tourism agencies, the dimensions of the impact of the Covid-1 pandemic crisis. An assessment tool is developed for the various dimensions related to the impact of the pandemic.
Methodology: The method chosen was the questionnaire survey, which was sent by email to 318 travel agencies in the Central region of Portugal, located in the districts that make up this territory: Aveiro, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Leiria, Guarda, and Viseu.
Findings: The results show that the impact of the Covid-19 crisis can be measured through six dimensions: psychological, career, accounting, economic, demand, and networking. Thus, the impact of Covid-19 is no longer understood as a general concept, but is now perceived as a set of six specific factors.
Originality: The development of an instrument to assess the various dimensions of the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic crisis will allow these companies to guide their strategy and develop the necessary tools to combat crises and reduce their damage.
Keywords: Crisis, Covid-19, travel agencies, Central Region.
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European Journal of Applied Business and Management
ISSN: 2183-5594
DOI: https://doi.org/10.58869/EJABM
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