IMPACTS OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON TOURISM IN THE MATO GROSSO PANTANAL

Abstract

This paper presents a preliminary analysis of the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on tourism in three of the main municipalities of Pantanal Matogrossense: Barão de Melgaço, Poconé e Cáceres, in the period between the first semester of 2019 and the first semester of 2020, with the beginning of mobility restrictions, in an attempt to prevent the proliferation of the disease and the closing of international borders. The study was carried out in the light of the “Theory of the tourism system”, as it understands that the effects of the pandemic had repercussions on all components of tourism, parts of a connected and constantly changing system, influenced by its agents and also by the environment in which it finds itself, the main attractive factor for tourists. The analysis of these components was based on data representative of the effects, in this period, on tourist flows, measured by the number of flights at the main airport in Mato Grosso (Várzea Grande), in the economy and finances of these municipalities, in the variation in the number of Jobs, in the situation of establishments linked to tourism and by the implementation of public policies, aimed at controlling mobility and social isolation. It concludes with the confirmation of the effects of the pandemic, with greater relevance over the set of operational actions, in the relationship of supply and demand for tourism products, in the processes of production, distribution and consumption, with a decrease in the number of visitors, regulated by laws, drop in the number of Jobs, closure of establishments, decrease in the collection and changes in people’s habits.