ABSTRACT
Introduction. The changes that have taken place in the global economy as a result of the coronavirus pandemic have had a negative impact on all economic sectors. The most negative manifestation of this is in the tourism industry. Bulgarian tourism is also among those hit hard by the crisis. This is evidenced by the many bankruptcies of travel companies and the reported financial difficulties. Many of the restrictions imposed on tourists when crossing national borders and the requirements for those wishing to use tourist services are just some of the reasons for the crisis in the sector. Its deepening is the basis for making recommendations to correct the situation. The reasons for the current study are the problems in the tourism sector and the threatening trends of frequent corporate bankruptcies, as well as the closure of many tourist sites. Aim and tasks. The aim of the study is to present the situation in which the economic entities of the tourism sector in the Republic of Bulgaria operate and to propose solutions for improving their financial and economic condition. The scope of the study used data for various indicators (visits of foreign tourists, overnight stays of Bulgarian and foreign citizens, turnover indices in the sector, etc.) describing the state of Bulgarian tourism for the period 2019-2021. Results. The processed data given an idea of the current state of the tourism sector in the Republic of Bulgaria. The study is a corrective to the problems in the industry, which are provoked by changes in the visits of local and foreign tourists. Based on the analysis, a set of recommendations were made to improve the state of the sector: achieving sustainability of tourist visits;stricter requirements for transport companies;provision of financial assistance by the government;opportunities to use the interest-free grace period for received loans;and establishing Bulgaria as a safe destination. Conclusion. The conducted situational analysis of the hotel and restaurant business in Bulgaria for the period 20192021 is the basis for making several recommendations aimed at stabilizing the sector. Some of them are related to: financial support for the tourism business given by the state;reducing the rate of tax due;ensuring an interest-free grace period for loans from financial institutions;providing opportunities for using funds under various programs for the implementation of innovations in the activities of tourism companies in order to increase their competitiveness and bring them into a state that meets national and world requirements for tourism business.
ABSTRACT
Over the past years, tourism has been among the most rapidly developing economic sectors in the world. Tourism has demonstrated its sustainability during many challenges and crises. It has also proved to be a driving force for sustainable global socio-economic progress and development. This growth is inseparable from increasing digitalization that encourages innovations, advancement, and globalization in the tourism industry and has thoroughly redefined traveling concepts. There is still no clear awareness of how tourism will continue to develop after the unprecedented crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. However, it is apparent that tourism will recover and contribute to the recovery of seriously affected economies and societies due to its ability to adapt to changes and provide innovative solutions to new challenges. The research objective is to present some digital solutions introduced into the tourism sector during the COVID-19 restrictions. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG.
ABSTRACT
Covid-19 has turned our world upside down and transformed nearly every aspect of daily life, business and travel. The COVID-19 pandemic has had severe negative impacts on human beings in all spheres of economic, social and even geopolitical life worldwide. The impact of this crisis will be the subject of numerous studies in all fields of scientific research in the coming years. According to all official data, the tourism sector is one of the most affected sectors of the economy. Despite the reported partial recovery in the sphere of tourism revenues in the period May-September 2020, the tourism industry is far from the reported in recent years' growth regarding the number of visits and tourism revenues. On the contrary, serious declines were reported, reaching 80% decline in revenue, compared to 2019 This study aims to examine the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on Bulgarian tourism and the behaviour of Bulgarian tourists. To achieve this, a situational analysis of the impact of travel restrictions on tourists and on the tourism sector in Bulgaria has been made. Changes in the number of tourist visits to Bulgaria in the period 2015-2020 have been studied. The study examines the attitudes of Bulgarian tourists and changes in their tourist consumption during the period of travel restrictions. The obtained results give us grounds to make recommendations for faster dealing with the losses suffered by the business and the slump in demand reported by the tourists as a result of the imposed COVID-19 restrictions. The research importance stems from taking into consideration and reporting the impact of this large-scale phenomenon in all its aspects, which will allow businesses and countries to tackle COVID-19 challenges more quickly. © 2021 International Multidisciplinary Scientific Geoconference. All rights reserved.