REFLECTIONS ABOUT PERSPECTIVES OF TOURISM IN THE LIGHT OF COVID 19 IN COSTA RICA

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID 19 pandemic has generated a significant impact on the global tourism activity. Costa Rica has not been the exception and there have been negative implications at all levels, from the impact on entrepreneurship to unemployment in the tourism sector. This has caused uncertainty and ignorance about what the prospects for tourism will be to deal with this pandemic. Objective: This article aims to comment on the main perspectives of tourism in the light of COVID 19 in Costa Rica, to generate important information that can be used for decision-making and to have more clarity about different options for economic recovery that could be implemented. Results: Some general data on the effects of Covid 19 on the global and Costa Rican tourism sector are presented. Also, the perspectives for tourism in Costa Rica in the light of COVID 19 are analyzed. Reference is made to the “new normal” in tourism, to the factors that could affect when making a decision to travel, and to the main priorities when making a trip during the pandemic. Finally, some trends that may contribute to the tourism recovery in Costa Rica during Covid-19 are suggested. Conclusion: The pandemic is causing drastic changes in tourism supply and demand, which in turn generates changes in the behavior of the tourists conditioning their willingness to travel. In the current context, resilience has gained importance during this crisis and this situation constitutes an opportunity for the Costa Rican tourism sector to reinvent itself and to bet on the regeneration of tourist destinations.