In Pakistan, the coronavirus has devastated the tourism industry with major tourist destinations seeing limited visitors while Pakistan Airlines (PIA) put a ban on international and national flights.
Hotels in Pakistan are also bearing the brunt of the virus as citizens have been restricted from travelling due to which hotel bookings in major cities of the country have dropped significantly. In Gilgit Baltistan thousand of tourist visit every year for cherry blossom however, much of the business lost due to novel coronavirus outbreak.
Pakistan’s hotel industry lost Rs100 million in the past month alone due to a notable drop in the number of guests. The loss is set to decline further owing to the steadily increasing number of cases in the country. Majority of the travel agencies operating in Pakistan are currently occupied in bringing Pakistani travellers back from Saudi Arabia within a 72-hour deadline put in place by the Gulf country and to send Iqama holders in Pakistan back to Saudi Arabia within the timeframe.
The World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC) says up to 50 million jobs could be lost because of the pandemic worldwide. Its chief executive, Gloria Guevara, said the outbreak “presents a significant threat to the industry”.
The tourism industry has been massively affected by the spread of coronavirus, as many countries have introduced travel restrictions in an attempt to contain its spread.
Cruise ship firm Princess Cruises is suspending all operations for 60 days. One of its cruises was kept off the cost of San Francisco for five days after 21 passengers tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
British Airways, EasyJet and Norwegian Air have all also ban flights in response to the pandemic outbreak. Korean Air even warned that the coronavirus could threaten its survival.