Will COVID-19 Boost Sustainable Tourism: Wishful Thinking or Reality?

Verena Tauber and Thomas Bausch
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Verena Tauber: Competence Centre Tourism and Mobility, Free University of Bolzano-Bozen, 39031 Brunico, Italy
Thomas Bausch: Competence Centre Tourism and Mobility, Free University of Bolzano-Bozen, 39031 Brunico, Italy

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 3, 1-24

Abstract: Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, scholars have presented publications discussing a shift of tourism towards a higher level of sustainability. Many argue that in 2020, people were not able to travel as usual and therefore could discover the added value of a sustainable vacation through new experiences in new, often domestic destinations. Using a quantitative online panel-based study in five European countries and the USA, we looked for evidence supporting such arguments. We analyzed demographics, the observed change in destination choice, and important criteria when selecting a different destination, including potential effects of the pandemic on traveling. We uncovered possible impacts of the 2020 vacation experience on future traveling and looked at both travel push factors and social values of non-travelers and travelers for explanation. Overall, we could not find any evident signals for the pandemic to be a trigger for more sustainable traveling, nor a long-term change in future demand.

Keywords: COVID-19; pandemic; destination choice; travel push factors; social values; tourism system; travel behavior (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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