Reviving Asia-Pacific Tourism is Touch and Go amid Coronavirus Pandemic

CANBERRA, KOMPAS.com — Asia-Pacific tourism is making both advances and missteps after global travel came to an abrupt halt following the coronavirus pandemic.

As the worldwide virus transmission continues to surge and linger, Asia-Pacific tourism operators are doing their best to navigate the situation.

On Friday, Indonesia’s popular resort island of Bali tentatively opened to domestic travelers.

Down south in Australia’s Queensland, famously known as Australia’s Sunshine State, local tourism businesses are struggling to stay afloat.

Read also: Mitigating Coronavirus Pandemic Will Cost Australia $131 Billion in 2020

Queensland is expected to lose visitors from Australia’s biggest city, Sydney.

With international travel heavily restricted, progress in reviving tourism has been at best anemic and usually perilous.

The perils became evident in Vietnam's popular beach destination of Da Nang, where an outbreak that began with one person last week has swelled to nearly 100 cases.

Read also: Vietnam’s Da Nang Under Lockdown Following Fresh Covid-19 Cases

Da Nang’s beaches, which host some 50,000 tourists daily during the high season, were emptied when the city was locked down Tuesday.