Health and safety is top priority for consumers when opting for a destination, although the Asia-Pacific region gives rise to a higher than average positive sentiments but lags behind due to demand for cleanliness and a low impact on the environment.
These factors have been highlighted in the recently launched report, ‘The Impact of Health and Hygiene on post-Covid-19 Destination Competitiveness in the Asia Pacific’, published by the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) with contributions from the co-founders of the Global Health Security (GHS) Index, a project of the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) and the Johns Hopkins Centre for Health Security (JHU); TCI Research, TripAdvisor and the World Economic Forum.
According to PATA chief of staff Trevor Weltman, “Despite much remaining unknown about the future of travel post-Covid-19, this report highlights emerging trends about health and hygiene in travel and tourism concerning booking behavior and resident sentiment. Such insights can assist destination managers, and marketers get ahead of the curve to rethink, rebuild, and reposition their destination’s focus on health and hygiene beginning now.”
Destination managers and other tourism stakeholders across the Asia-Pacific region need to create close partnerships with public health officials, tourism supply chain businesses and local communities to start a synchronized renewal of traveler confidence regarding the health and safety of their destination. Destinations meeting these expectations by investing in hygiene and safety measures and clearly communicating these changes to travelers and residents in the same way will be well-positioned to stay afloat in the post-Covid-19 travel era.
Tags: Asia-Pacific Region, health and safety, PATA
