Tourist places gradually return to normal

 Tourist places gradually return to normal

In many parts of the world, accelerating vaccinations has allowed travel restrictions to be lifted and the service industry to reopen. As a result, tourism activities gradually returned to normal, with some places approaching or surpassing the level before the Covid-19 pandemic.

The summer that exceeded Croatia's expectations

Croatia's tourism industry is enjoying a summer beyond expectations, when the Adriatic coastal areas are crowded with tourists, the guides are busy, and the restaurants and sailing ships are full. Visitor numbers to Croatia increased in July-August. As of early August, room nights were at 69% in the same period of 2019. The success of the summer tourist season has had a strong impact on the country. Croatia's economy, where tourism accounts for 20% of GDP.

The beach in Dubrovnik is crowded again during the summer. Source: AP

The revival is clearly visible in Dubrovnik, a southern coastal city known for its old town and nightlife. Now, the central streets are bustling with passersby and caravans of tourist cars. Toni Dugandzic, who works at Gusta Me restaurant, said the rapidly increasing number of tourists surprised people and businesses. Restaurant owners are not prepared for this and don't hire enough staff to accommodate. "This has never happened in 2020," said Josip Crncevic, a tour guide in Dubrovnik.

To be safe during the epidemic season, many tourists rent full sailboats to visit the bay and islands of Croatia. The high demand caused the marina in the province of Biograd to become crowded and the ships filled with reservations. Marin Katicin, director of a charter company, said: "Everybody has their own boat. We don't have boats to rent anymore."

Las Vegas sets a sales record

The famous tourist city Las Vegas (Nevada, USA) is experiencing a record summer, after a long time of closure because of Covid-19. There is no longer an image of a "ghost city" in early 2020, when amusement parks were closed for nearly 80 days. The fact that Americans cannot easily travel abroad has also helped boost domestic activity. A lot of tourists have chosen Las Vegas, after months of being confined at home and not being able to spend money on entertainment.

According to a representative of the Nevada Gaming Control Commission, in July 2021 alone, the monthly revenue from casinos in the state of Nevada reached 1.36 billion USD, the highest ever. Over 1 billion USD/month is a significant number and Nevada has maintained its revenue at this level for the past 5 consecutive months.

City of Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

It is estimated that Las Vegas welcomed 3.3 million visitors in July, only 10% lower than the same period in 2019 when there was no Covid-19 epidemic and there were still international visitors. A series of exciting events organized like boxer Conor McGregor's boxing match, Garth Brooks concert or the return of famous artists like Usher and Bruno Mars also help attract visitors to Las Vegas.

The casino staff said that the number of visitors has returned to pre-pandemic levels and people are not worried about the disease. The number of people driving themselves to Las Vegas from California is growing rapidly, outstripping pre-pandemic summers. Many visitors also come from Texas, Florida and the Midwest. "The reason is that the demand has been pent up. Everyone is in a hurry to travel as soon as they are allowed to, because they have not been able to go for a long time," said a manager at Resorts World (Las Vegas).

Maldives stands firm during the pandemic

Maldives is considered as one of the rare successful models of world tourism in 2020 and is expected to be in 2021. Most of the hotels in Maldives are separate from each other and provide full in-house services, create conditions for visitors to be exempt from quarantine procedures and have little contact with indigenous people. Currently international visitors from many countries can come to the Maldives without being quarantined, only having to present a certificate of negative PCR test within 72 hours.

Since welcoming international guests in July 2020, Maldives has opened a series of tourist facilities and launched attractive promotions and programs. In the first eight months of 2021, the number of international visitors to the Maldives has reached about 43% compared to before the pandemic, with more than 732 thousand arrivals. This number far exceeds the 555 thousand arrivals of the whole of 2020. The Maldives government hopes to welcome 1.5 million visitors by the end of this year, close to the record 1.7 million in 2019.