Global Impact of COVID-19 on Tourism and Policy Recommendations for Hawaii's Tourism

Tourism is considered a social, cultural, and economic phenomenon which is heavily dependent on the movement of people to countries or places outside their usual environment for personal or business/professional purposes. With the onset of COVID-19 lockdowns and travel bans, the tourism industry faced several significant impacts globally. To understand the global impact of COVID-19 on tourism, an extensive literature review was conducted. Through the review, five main impacts were identified: (1) the effect on the hospitality industry; (2) changes in personal travel behavior; (3) the impact on employment and workforce; (4) the impact on employees’ mental health; and (5) the impact on tourism-dependence economies. Overwhelmingly, the literature points to the lack of economic diversity as a reason for the profound impact tourism destinations such as Hawaii suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic. Policies focusing on expanding economic diversification in Hawaii and other tourist destinations are warranted and explored through the discussion of this thesis.