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Tourism and Natural Disaster Recovery: Keys to Success

What is the impact of natural disasters on tourism and how can the tourism industry itself promote recovery for the destination? Examining Nepal’s recovery following the Gorkha Earthquake in 2015, Jacqueline Harper shares insights into the role of tourism in disaster recovery, emphasizing the significance of swift recovery, effective destination marketing, strategic partnerships, and the opportunity to build back better through sustainable and community-focused approaches.

How tourism can help a tourist destination recover after a natural disaster 

In the wake of the Maui fires, earthquakes in Morocco, a new 2023 quake in remote western Nepal, and other recent natural and manmade disasters, tourism officials have been contemplating when to resume their tourism operations. This dilemma is not uncommon. Re-opening too soon can endanger tourists’ safety; add pressure to already taxed infrastructure, accommodations, and resources; and re-traumatize residents when tourists ask how they were affected by the disaster. On the other hand, tourism and the resumption of business activities is urgently needed to fuel the speedy recovery and rebuilding of the devastated local economy.

The Gorkha Earthquake in Nepal is a case study of how tourism can aid in disaster recovery. On April 25th, 2015, the Gorkha region of Nepal was the epicenter of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. Hundreds of aftershocks occurred for months afterward, leaving a serious impact on the country’s infrastructure, including many heritage sites that double as tourist sites. Thousands of people were injured and died. Damages cost approximately $7 billion USD, and impacted about one-third of the population. In terms of tourist arrivals, after 6 months, visitor numbers had declined by 42%.

1. There was a quick time frame for tourism to return to normal levels.

As shown in Figure 2 below, there was initially a decline in tourist arrivals following the earthquake. However, starting in 2016, tourist arrivals bounced back and continued to grow. In 2017, Nepal hit over one million international arrivals – a goal they set before the earthquake – and achieved a few years ahead of schedule. By 2018, Nepal was the third fastest-growing country in Asia based on tourist arrivals. Like many countries around the world, COVID-19 hit tourism in Nepal hard in 2020 and 2021; however, the number of arrivals is now back on the incline.

One of the keys to getting tourism started again after the earthquake was marketing and the media. Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), the country’s destination marketing organization, worked diligently to restore the country’s image following the earthquake. In the media, Nepal was being shown as being destroyed – places in ruins; collapsed temples; people in hardship – an unappealing image for travelers selecting their next destination. However, this narrative was not completely true. The earthquake impacted a few regions; only 31 of 75 districts were hard hit. The earthquake did not impact popular tourist destinations like Pokhara and Chitwan. This is where marketing and the media were key to bringing tourism back.

NTB invited celebrities in key market groups to come to Nepal and highlight its tourism offerings: Jackie Chan, David Beckham, and Prince Harry, to name a few. This sparked conversation in the international news and demonstrated to international markets that Nepal was once again open for tourism. Additionally, representatives from NTB were sent on international roadshows to promote Nepal to tourism agencies, who would then promote traveling to Nepal within their own countries.

These different methods allowed the NTB to rewrite the narrative of the country post-disaster and promote tourism once again.

3. Partnerships are key to disaster and tourism recovery.

The success of Nepal’s disaster recovery was also due to partnerships. NTB worked with news outlets like BBC, CNN, and TripAdvisor to get the message out that one could safely travel to Nepal. They also had financial and technical support from other countries like Japan International Cooperation Agency, China Aid, USAID to rebuild heritage sites. International Knowledge of tourism recovery came from PATA, the World Bank, and UNWTO to help with the tourism recovery. International partnerships were key for rebuilding and financing the recovery, but also marketing the country to foreign markets.

4. Disasters are an opportunity to build back better within the tourism industry.

Based on my observations, tourism is being promoted heavily post-earthquake and COVID-19 to attract as many visitors as possible. My main criticism of this process is that the NTB government is adopting the “heads in beds” strategy, in which they try to maximize growth by bringing in as many tourists as possible. Immediately following a disaster, this may be important to restarting an economy; however, once tourism has returned, it should not be the long-term strategy. Natural disasters are an opportunity to build tourism more responsibly. The NTB (and many DMOs around the world) should be incorporating sustainability and accessibility principles into their national and regional tourism strategies. As they are rebuilding the brand image of a destination post-disaster, there is an opportunity to make tourism better for the community in which it operates.

• After the devastating earthquakes in 2010 and 2011, Christchurch embarked on a journey of sustainable rebuilding. This involved not just reconstructing damaged infrastructure but doing so with an emphasis on eco-friendly and resilient designs. Many buildings incorporated modern earthquake-resistant features and energy-efficient technologies.
• A critical aspect of the recovery was the involvement of the local community. Residents were encouraged to participate in the decision-making process, allowing them to have a say in how their city would be reimagined. This engagement ensured that the rebuilt city reflected the desires and needs of the people who call it home.
• In the aftermath of the disaster, there was a concerted effort to support and promote local businesses. The “Shop the Sirens” campaign encouraged residents and visitors to shop at local stores, helping these businesses recover and thrive.
• The earthquake catalyzed Christchurch to become more resilient in the face of future disasters. The city implemented comprehensive disaster preparedness and risk reduction strategies to mitigate the impact of any future seismic events. By following the path of building back better, destinations can not only recover but emerge stronger, ensuring that the benefits of tourism extend to all and that they are better prepared to face any future challenges that come their way.

In conclusion, the case of Nepal’s recovery after the Gorkha Earthquake serves as a valuable lesson for destinations worldwide facing the aftermath of natural disasters. As we’ve seen, quick recovery in the tourism sector is possible with effective destination marketing, partnerships, and a clear message of safety and opportunity. Yet, it’s equally important for destinations to look beyond short-term recovery and use post-disaster periods to “build back better” by embracing a sustainable, community-centered approach. That means investing in eco-friendly infrastructure, supporting local businesses, engaging the community in decision-making, and integrating sustainability and accessibility principles into their tourism strategies.

Jacqueline Harper is a Masters of Environmental Studies in Geography student at the University of Waterloo in Canada. Her masters research focuses on looking at the role social and cultural capital plays in aiding tourism recovery in the Kathmandu Valley post-Gorkha earthquake. As an inspiring destination stewardship practitioner, Jacqueline hopes to work in tourism after grad school. As such, she has volunteered with the Destination Stewardship Center, researched the impacts of cruise vs layover tourism, and interned at the Center for Responsible Travel and Solimar International.

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The effects of natural disasters on international tourism: A global analysis

Jaume rosselló.

a Departament d’Economia Aplicada, Universitat de les Illes Balears, Spain

b Griffith Institute for Tourism, Griffith University, Australia

c Departament of Economics, University of California, Berkeley, USA

Susanne Becken

d School of Hospitality Management and Tourism, University of Surrey, United Kingdom

Maria Santana-Gallego

Tourism is shaped by a wide range of factors and forces, including exogenous ones that have no direct link with the tourism sector. Natural disasters and unexpected events are prime examples of such determining factors, as they have profound effects on individuals and society, and as a result have the potential to affect tourism flows considerably. Several theoretical arguments exist why natural disasters and unexpected events could influence tourist destination choices. However, empirical research to confirm the nature and extent of impacts of disasters on tourism is lacking. To address this gap, this paper incorporates a dataset on natural and man-made disaster events into a model of international tourism flows to evaluate the effect of different types of disasters on international arrivals at the national level. Findings provide evidence that the occurrence of different types of event change tourist flows to varying degrees. Although in some cases a positive effect is estimated, in general the impacts are negative, resulting in reduced tourist arrivals following an event. Understanding the relationship between disaster events and tourism is helpful for destination managers who make critical decisions in relation to recovery, reconstruction and marketing.

Graphical abstract

• • First global evaluation of the impact of disasters on international tourism flows.
• • Tsunamis, Floods and Volcanic Eruptions constitute negative motivators.
• • Volcanic Eruptions impact most negatively on international tourism flows.
• • High economic consequences of a disaster impact negatively on tourism.
• • In line with theory, some disasters can also positively affect flows.

1. Introduction

Earthquakes, tsunamis, floods, bush fires, hurricanes, droughts and heatwaves have always occurred. These events have formed part of the wider ‘riskscape’ that humans have learned to manage and live with. However, more recently the impacts of disasters have increased substantially, partly because of the exacerbating effects of climate change, but also due to the growing complexity of socio-ecological systems in a highly connected and globalized world ( Becken, Mahon, Rennie, & Shakeela, 2014 ). For instance, the year 2017 recorded a series of hurricanes (Harvey, Irma and Maria) in the Caribbean and a severe earthquake in Mexico, amongst other events, and these resulted in the highest incurred losses ever recorded (US$ 135 billion) ( Munich, 2018 ).

Disasters constitute abrupt changes that shock the system in which tourism is embedded ( Shondell Miller, 2008 ). The nature and extent of impacts depend on the type of shock and the resilience of the affected system ( OECD, 2014 ). Most disasters have profound impacts on individuals, organizations and communities, and consequently on tourism activities. The repercussions of a disaster are likely to affect tourism directly at a destination country, but indirect consequences for travel to and from the affected region are also conceivable ( Jin, Qu & Bap. 2019 ; Ruan, Quan & Liu, 2017 ). Understanding, managing and responding to these risks, therefore, has to be an integral component of sustainable tourism management ( Shakeela & Becken, 2015 ). Consequently, it is not surprising that the topic of risk management and disaster mitigation is attracting increasing attention in tourism research. An emerging body of literature has provided both theoretical and empirical insights into multiple aspects of disasters and tourism.

Research to date has largely focused on crisis management and disaster risk reduction ( Becken & Hughey, 2013 ; Faulkner, 2001 ; Ritchie, 2008 ). In particular, academics and practitioners have been interested in how sustainable development and marketing strategies should include plans to prepare, protect and rebuild a destination after a disaster, both in terms of physical assets and destination image ( Aljerf & Choukaife, 2016 ; Okuyama, 2018 ). The perceptions of safety is an important aspect of destination image, and different types of risks and events have been studied in the context of visitor travel information seeking and decision making ( Sharifpour, Walters, Ritchie, & Winter, 2014 ; Trumbo et al., 2016 ; Williams & Baláž, 2015 ). Re-establishing public perceptions of safety and attractiveness following a disaster is crucial to attract and reassure potential visitors to travel to the destination and, by doing so, assisting the affected area to regain functionality and economic recovery ( WTTC, 2018 ). In addition to understanding visitor perceptions, it has been found that addressing risk perceptions and behaviours of relevant tourism stakeholder is critical for effective disaster response and recovery ( Kozak, Crotts, & Law, 2007 ; Park & Reisinger, 2010 ).

Tourism is exposed and vulnerable to multiple types of hazards ( Becken, Zammit, & Hendrikx, 2015 ), and disasters have the potential to deter visitors from travelling to affected destinations ( Bhati, Upadhayaya, & Sharma, 2016 ). However, empirical research that confirms or quantifies the relationship between disasters and tourism activity is scant. Existing studies have taken a case study approach (e.g. for Chinese outbound tourism, see Jin, Qu, & Bao, 2019 ), but a global analysis is missing ( Ghaderi, Mat Som, & Henderson, 2014 ; Jónsdóttir, 2011 ; Mazzocchi & Montini, 2001 ; Rucińska & Lechowicz, 2014 ). It is therefore timely to undertake a global study that uses a consistent approach to measuring the impact of disasters on international tourism movements. To increase the value of such a study for tourism managers, it needs to be designed in a way that includes a wide range of disaster types and magnitudes in the same model ( Ghimire, 2016 ).

Consequently, the aim of this research is to explore the effect of various types of natural and man-made disasters on international tourism movements. To that end, this research integrates two different global datasets, namely one on disasters and another one on bilateral international tourist flows. A gravity model for international tourism flows is defined to quantify the effects of different disaster events on international tourist arrivals to the affected country. More precisely, we analyze the impact of droughts, earthquakes (ground movements and tsunamis), epidemics, cold and heat waves, floods, industrial accidents, landslides, wildfires, storms and volcanic activities. Moreover, we use three different proxies to measure the impact of disasters; namely the number of deaths, affected people and economic costs. Results will support the tourism sector and other key players (e.g. international insurance companies) in developing adequate responses to managing risk and recovery. To the best of our knowledge, the present research is the first attempt to undertake such an integrated analysis at a global scale.

The rest of this article is organized as follows: the next section contains a literature review of the arguments behind the expected relationship between disaster events and tourism demand. The third section explains the methodology, data and the research design. The fourth section presents the empirical application. Finally, a concluding discussion is presented that provides recommendations and an outlook on future research.

2. Literature review

The general perception might point towards an increase in the frequency of natural disasters over time, but this assumption needs to be verified. In fact, it has been suggested that, in some cases, the definition of disasters can become too fluid for statistical time series consideration ( Horlick-Jones, Fortune, & Peters, 1991 ). Neumayer and Barthel (2011) analyzed the economic damage from climate-related disasters and they found no significant upward trends in normalized data over the last 30 years globally. However, the same study acknowledged that the frequency of weather-related natural disasters indicates an upward trend.

Other research suggests that the combination of climate change, industrialization and urbanization has accelerated the magnitude and occurrence of natural disasters around the world and the extent of the resulting damage (Becken et al., 2015; Park & Reisinger, 2010 ). Population growth (often occurring in exposed areas such as coastal environments) is recognized as a key driver to explain why natural disasters affect more and more people ( Berke, 1998 ; Wachinger, Renn, Begg, & Kuhlicke, 2012 ). Aside from natural disasters, Richardson (1994) notes that man-made disasters are becoming more severe because of the increasingly more powerful technology that is being used.

Perceptions of the frequency and extent of disasters are just as important as statistical facts. A key factor in this growing risk perception is the media ( Gierlach, Belsher, & Beutler, 2010 ). For a the general public, who is exposed to mass media, it may appear that we live in an increasingly disaster prone world ( Faulkner, 2001 ). The saying ‘perceptions are reality’ is nowhere more pertinent than in tourism, where potential visitors chose their destinations based on a mix of objective and subjective factors. Destination (risk) perception has emerged as one of the critical factors in the decision-making process ( Becken, Jin, Chen, & Gao, 2016 ).

Disasters and other forms of crises (e.g. epidemics, conflict, pollution) can lead to a reduction in visitation to the affected area ( Bhati et al., 2016 ). Several examples in the literature provide empirical evidence of reductions in tourist arrivals following major events. For instance, Mazzocchi and Montini (2001) evaluated the impact on visitation to the Umbria region in Central Italy, following a major earthquake in September 1997. The data showed that arrivals fell drastically the first month after the main shock, with ongoing loss in tourism activity being recorded until June 1998. A case study of a volcanic eruption at the Eyjafjallajökull glacier in Iceland on 14th March 2010 showed that tourism numbers to Iceland reduced by 49% until 28th April 2011 ( Jónsdóttir, 2011 ). Huang and Min (2002) analyzed the Taiwan earthquake in September 1999, using an integrated moving average model to explore the recovery process. Their study revealed that the island's inbound arrivals had not yet fully recovered from the earthquake's devastation after 11 months. Kuo, Chen, Tseng, Ju, and Huang (2008) also used a time series model to investigate the impacts of infectious diseases, including Avian Flu and severe acute respiratory syndrome, on international tourist arrivals in Asia. The empirical results indicated that the numbers of affected cases had a significant impact in the case of SARS (see also Mao, Ding, & Lee, 2010 ; McAleer, Huang, Kuo, Chen, & Chang, 2010 ), but for Avian Flu.

Man-made crises, such as the BP oil spill in the Mexican Gulf in 2010, have also been found to reduce demand for travel to the affected area ( Ritchie, Crotts, Zehrer, & Volsky, 2013 ). Often, declines in visitation spread to neighboring areas, even when they are not impacted by the event. A recent example has been the dramatic down turn in tourism in the Caribbean region, following the devastating hurricane season in 2017 ( WTTC, 2018 ). Events within one country or a region can lead to notable structural breaks in international tourism arrivals, which was demonstrated by Cró and Martins (2017a) in a recent study on various forms of crises in 25 countries.

There are several reasons why visitation to disaster areas declines in the immediate aftermath of an event. The most direct inhibitor relates to the damage inflicted by a disaster that prevents the affected areas from engaging in tourism activity. Secondly, the decline in tourist arrivals is due to people's risk perceptions and avoidance of regions that are deemed unsafe ( Kozak et al., 2007 ; Sönmez, Apostolopoulos, & Tarlow, 1999 ). Thirdly, and related to the second issue, is that potential travelers may feel uncomfortable or have ethical concerns about travelling to a disaster region. These underlying factors are discussed in more detail.

In many cases, disasters pose significant physical constraints on the delivery of tourism services, thus severely limiting the supply side of tourism ( Shaw, Saayman, & Saayman, 2012 ). Depending on the type and extent of the disaster, critical infrastructure could be compromised or dysfunctional. Prominent examples include airports and ports, land transport infrastructure, and electricity and telecommunication networks ( Ghobarah, Saatcioglu, & Nistor, 2006 ; Parajuli & Haynes, 2006 ). In addition, core tourism assets could be damaged and not ready for business, such as accommodation establishments and key attractions. For instance, the 2015 earthquake in Kathmandu, Nepal, resulted in wide-spread destruction of UNESCO listed World Heritage sites, and several trekking routes were deemed unsafe due to risks of rock fall and movements following further aftershocks or heavy rain events ( Becken, 2015 ).

Even longer-term and insidious disasters, such as a drought, may impede the ability of a destination to cater for tourism. A recent example was the water shortage in Cape Town, South Africa, that led to a reduction in tourism and a notable loss in income for local businesses. The decline was possibly influenced by requests to conserve waters, but also due to perceptions by visitors that the destination is not able to host tourists ( Wendell, 2018 ).

In addition to uncertainty around whether the destination is safe or tourism-ready, there are other psychological factors that influence tourists’ decision making. Frequently, media coverage of disasters conveys the resulting loss of life, human suffering, public and private property damage, and economic and social disruption. The ensuing negative publicity often characterizes the period after a disaster, lasting until full recovery is achieved and pre-disaster conditions resume ( Sönmez et al., 1999 ). For instance, Cohen (2005) points out that religious beliefs relating to the bodies of the tsunami victims trapped in sediment and rubble were behind a group of Asian tourists deciding to abandon their plans to visit Thailand after the 2006 Tsunami. Others may simply consider it inappropriate to visit a disaster zone.

Apart from religious or ethical concerns, some travelers do not wish to impede the recovery effort and place additional burden on the destination's resources and infrastructure (e.g. Becken, 2015 ). In some cases, the delayed recovery towards previously tourism figures is deliberate and led by the local tourism organizations. This was the case for the Christchurch (New Zealand) earthquake (2011), where extensive destruction of the city made tourism impossible, or at best would have led to unsatisfactory tourist experiences, leading Christchurch Canterbury Marketing to de-market Christchurch but promote surrounding regions instead ( Orchiston & Higham, 2014 ). Optimal timing and stages of recovery were examined by Okuyama (2018) for the case of avian flu in Japan.

Whilst both theory and empirical evidence point to a decline in tourism following a disaster, several factors might promote travel to an affected area. Providing information about hazards and their effects draws human attention and may even cause a level of fascination (e.g. the ‘ring of fire’, referring to tectonic activities around the edges of the Pacific Ocean). In this way, the number of tourists might be influenced by the coverage that media devote to natural disasters in other countries. Media often use extreme natural phenomena as material for captivating stories, and travel bloggers, tourism campaigners and social media multiply the lure of these. An example of a disaster turning into a tourist attraction is the Eyjafjallajokull volcano in Iceland, with “the prospect of a new eruption bring[ing] a mix of trepidation and anticipation” ( Lawless, 2016 , p. 1).

Media coverage about a natural, or perhaps also man-made, phenomenon plays an informative role as a motivating factor to visit a region. Rucińska and Lechowicz (2014) argue that mass media and marketing are influential factors in the development of various forms of disaster-related tourism, as information on catastrophes popularizes the host location and the type of the phenomenon. Such coverage could be both educational and simultaneously stimulate the interest of the audience. Additionally, natural disasters and unexpected events can cause the arrival of people from other countries for humanitarian reasons but also for visiting friends and relatives who have been victims of those events. According to the statistical framework used by the United Nations World Tourism Organization, these arrivals are captured as international tourists.

Finally, the decision to visit a disaster area for a range of motivations has been conceptualized as Dark Tourism ( Rucińska & Lechowicz, 2014 ). This type of tourism involves travelling to places historically associated with death and tragedy ( Foley & Lennon, 1996 ). According to Rucińska (2016) , tourists might decide to travel to a region that has experienced a disaster because they want to feel emotions, risk, and the dynamics of natural hazards. Overall, the present research hypothesizes a negative relationship between national disasters and inbound tourism; however, it also considers the motivating factors pointed out by Rucińska (2016) that might lead to an increase in visitation after a disaster. The model developed in the following section will capture the cumulative impact of both effects.

3. Methodology and data

3.1. gravity model for tourism demand.

This research develops a gravity model for international tourism flows to quantify the effects of different types of natural and man-made disasters on tourist arrivals to the affected countries. Gravity models are commonly used in the trade literature ( Anderson, 2011 ), and increasingly in tourism research ( Fourie, Rosselló-Nadal, & Santana-Gallego, 2019 ; Khadaroo & Seetanah, 2008 ; Santeramo & Morelli, 2015 ). These models consider that international flows between two countries are directly proportional to their economic size, and inversely proportional to the distance between them. Consequently, the level of bilateral tourism flows can be explained by a set of determining variables as in a demand equation. Morley et al., 2014 have shown that gravity models to explain bilateral tourism can be derived from consumer choice theory. Accordingly, the formulation of a gravity model can also be interpreted as a tourism demand equation.

Analytically:

where, the dependent variable L n T o u i j t is the logarithm of tourist arrivals from country i , to destination country j , at year t ; X j t d is a set of d destination-specific time-variant variables such as income level or population while X i j t k is a set of k country-pair time-variant determinants such as belonging to the same regional trade agreement. The variables of interests for this research are included in Y j t l which is the set of l variables capturing the effect of l different disasters typologies (e.g. earthquake, tsunami, volcano, etc.) occurred in destination j during year t . This research uses three alternative proxies to measure the effect of disasters; namely number of deaths (D) in thousands, people affected (A) in millions and economic costs (C) in billions of US$. Finally, β 0 , β 1 k and β 2 l are parameters to be estimated.

Due to the panel nature of data used in these kinds of models, and since our variables of interest are destination-country time variant, country pairs fixed effects λ i j and origin-year fixed effects λ i t are also considered for estimation purposes. One of the consequences of this choice is that time-invariant country pair characteristics (such as distance or common borders) and time-variant origin country characteristics (such as income or population in the origin countries) are not explicitly included in the model. Specific consideration is not necessary, because all these variables are captured by these fixed effects, as also suggested by Balli, Ghassan, and Jeefri (2019) , Fourie et al. (2019) or Giambona, Dreassi, and Magrini (2018) . This is a common practice in the development of gravity models in order to avoid omitted factor bias, and instead focus on the variables of interest for the particular research question.

3.2. Data selection

As dependent variable, L n T o u i j t , we consider the natural logarithm of international tourist arrivals from country i to country j in year t . This dataset originates from the Compendium of Tourism Statistics compiled by the United Nations World Tourism Organization ( UNWTO, 2015 ). This database contains tourism movements between 171 countries for the period 1995–2013, with missing data for some years and countries.

In reference to the d variables determining tourism flows ( X j t d ), and according to the considerations mentioned above about the no inclusion of time-invariant country pair characteristics and time-variant origin country characteristics, we consider the logarithm of the real GDP per capita ( LnGDPpc jt ) as a proxy for the development level at each destination, and the logarithm of population ( LnPop jt ) to control for the size of the destination country ( Lim, 2006 ; Yap & Saha, 2013 ). Both variables were taken from the World Development Indicators (WDI) elaborated by the World Bank. Third, we also consider an instability indicator that concerns safety and security of visitors when they travel to a destination. Whilst there are different ways for evaluating safety and security at international level (See Cró & Martins, 2017b ; Cró, Martins, Simões, & Calisto, 2018 ; Fourie et al., 2019 or Santana-Gallego, Fourie, & Rosselló, 2020 ) in this case, and due to data coverage reasons, we use a proxy of the crime rate defined as the number of homicides per 10,000 inhabitants in the destination country ( Crime jt ). Data also stem from the WDI. On the other hand, vector X i j t k includes a variable to control for the intensity of the economic relationship between a pair of countries, which is also time varying. The idea is to capture the presence of trade agreements between country pairs as an indicator of bilateral relationships that could boost tourism. This variable ( RTA ijt ) is a dummy variable for being a signatory to the same regional trade agreement and stems from the Regional Trade Agreements Information System compiled by the World Trade Organization.

Data for the occurrence and impact of disasters were retrieved from the Centre for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), which makes data available through the Emergency Events Database (EM-DAT). EM-DAT was created with the initial support of the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Belgian Government. The main objective of the database is to inform humanitarian action at national and international levels. The initiative aims to rationalize decision making for disaster preparedness, as well as provide an objective base for vulnerability assessment and priority setting. EM-DAT contains core data on the occurrence and effects of over 22,000 mass disasters in the world from 1900 to the present day. The database is compiled from various sources, including UN agencies, non-governmental organizations, insurance companies, research institutes and press agencies. 1

According to the objectives of this present research, the disaster types included in EM-DAT and considered in our analysis are presented in Table 1 , Table 2 . For the gravity equation estimation we are limited by the availability of the tourist database (1995–2013). All other datasets provide data for this timeframe as well, leading to a database that covers a total number of 7885 events from the period of 1995–2013. These are described using three types of impact metrics ( Table 1 ). More specifically, of all events, 74.8% report information on the number of deaths, 59.3% report the extent of affected people (beyond deaths) and 31.7% state an estimated amount of damage measured in economic terms.

Disaster typology and main descriptive magnitudes (1995–2013).

Notes: Cold Waves include severe winter conditions. Epidemic episodes are not characterized by economic costs.

Disaster typology by Regions and main descriptive magnitudes in terms of people.

Notes: Affected People in thousands. Costs in US billions of dollars.

With regards to people killed by different disaster types, Table 2 shows that ground movements emerge as the most fatal type of disaster, with a reported number of 338.000 deaths during the period 1995–2013. Tsunamis and storms accounted for almost 250,000 deaths in the same period. In terms of affected people, floods and droughts have the greatest impact, with about 1,7 and 1 billion of people impacted upon, respectively. Concerning the economic costs of disasters, storms rank first, with a total amount of 798,32 billion dollars of damage recorded in the database. Storms make up 38% of total economic costs for the selected disasters in the EM-DAT during the period 1995–2013.

The distribution of disasters across different regions, indicates considerable variation both in terms of event type and resulting impacts. For instance, in the case of storms, although only 16.8% take place in the Americas, the impact in terms of deaths, affected people and costs is comparatively high (42.5%, 60.3% and 66.1%, respectively) than in other regions. A similar result is obtained for earthquakes in the Asia-Pacific regions (44.5% of events), with disproportionally high impacts in relation to the number of deaths (49.2%), affected people (85.2%) and costs (73.4%). Europe, with some exception, is characterized by a lower incidence of deaths and affected people, but a higher occurrence of costs.

Table 3 shows the most important events for each type of disaster in the database. For example, it can be observed that the Earthquake of Haiti in January 2010, which led to 222,570 deaths, was the worst event in terms of fatalities. The major storm (Cyclone Nargis) that occurred in Myanmar during May 2008 resulted in 138,366 deaths, the second largest number in the records. In terms of affected people, the drought affecting India during 2015 and 2016 was the most significant event reported in the database (330 million people impacted). Disasters also cause substantial economic damage. The highest economic loss recorded was tropical hurricane Katrina that made landfall in New Orleans, USA. It caused a total amount of damage of $125 billion.

Main Disasters in terms of affected population, deaths and economic costs.

3.3. Data preparation and analysis

Although the disaster database includes the exact day of the event, for the purpose of this analysis we are limited by the yearly nature of tourism data. Following guidance from the previous literature ( Jónsdóttir, 2011 ; Mazzocchi & Montini, 2001 ; Rucińska & Lechowicz, 2014 ) we consider two alternatives: distributing the potential consequences of each of the disasters to the time frame of the following 12 months and alternatively to the next 6 months after an event. Thus, for instance, if a hypothetical disaster occurred in September of year 2000, in the first case, 4/12 of the amount of damage (measured in deaths, affected or costs) would be attributed to the year 2000 and 8/12 to 2001. In the second case, 4/6 of the amount of damage would be allocated to the year 2000 and 2/6 to 2001.

Another important issue to be considered is the multicollinearity that can arise between the different types of impacts related to the same specific disaster. Thus, it is expected (and found) that the consequences of a certain disaster in terms of deaths will be correlated to other impacts measured in terms of affected people and economic costs. The increase in the variance of the coefficient estimates could drive them to be unstable and difficult to interpret. Consequently, our first strategy is to consider the three impact metrics (i.e. deaths, affected people and cost) separately in different equations. Additionally, for each of the three metrics, we evaluate the possibility to distribute the effects within 6 and 12 months. This results in 6 specifications: three for each of the impacts, times the two evaluation periods (6 and 12 months).

Importantly, according to the theoretical argumentation, the relationship between disasters and arrivals is not unidirectional and necessarily negative, but an increase in tourist arrivals could be observed in certain circumstances. For this reason, a second research strategy considers the inclusion of all the variables in a general regression that is reduced using statistical testing strategies in order to get a specific regression encompassing every other parsimonious regression that is a valid restriction of the general regression ( Hoover & Perez, 1999 and 2004 ). In other words, we integrate the three impact metrics into a single equation. Through this strategy, it is possible to explore in detail if effects arise that counteract the initially expected negative relationship between disaster impacts and tourism flows. Again, two impact timeframes are considered.

The gravity model for bilateral tourism flows as defined in equation [1] is estimated by using the Correia (2017) procedure to estimate linear models with many levels of fixed effects. This procedure is a generalization of the panel-fixed effects estimator with both country-pair and origin-year fixed effects. Database includes 171 countries for the period 1995–2013.

Table 4 presents the results of estimating equation [1] for the bilateral tourist arrivals ( L n T o u i j t ) as dependent variable and including each disaster impact measure separately. As previously mentioned, because our variable of interest is destination-country time variant, country pairs fixed effects and origin-year fixed effects are included in the model to control for any type of determinant at origin or country-pair level. Therefore, only time variant country-pair and destination-specific determinants are required. Each column shows the estimate of different disaster consequences (D = deaths, A = affected people, and C = economic costs) and the two alternatives for distributing the effects across the following 6 and 12 months. It is important to mention that we are interested in estimating the short-run effect of the natural disaster on inbound tourism. Exploring how the tourism sector at the destination country recovers in the long-run is beyond the objective of the paper.

Estimation results.

Note: ***p < 0.01, **p < 0.05, *p < 0.1. Dyadic and origin-year fixed effects are included in the model but estimates are not reported. Robust standard errors clustered by pairs.

In general, for all the estimates, control variables considered as determinants of tourism flows are statistically significant and with the expected sign. The coefficients for both L n G D P p c j t and L n P o p j t are significantly positive and slightly higher that unity, implying that a 1% increase in the destination GDP per capita and population will lead to an increase higher than 1% on tourist arrivals to the country. The coefficient for the RTA ijt , that controls for the existence of a trade agreement between country pairs during specific years, is also significant and positive. In this case, due to the binary nature of the explanatory variable used, the estimated coefficient (slightly higher that 0.04) implies that the existence of a trade agreement increases the number of tourists to a destination by more than 4%. Finally, and as expected, the variable related to low levels of security and safety at the destination country ( Crime jt ) shows a negative effect, indicating that an increase in the number of homicides (per 10,000 inhabitants) reduces tourist arrivals.

In reference to the different types of disasters, for events associated with Tsunamis , Floods and Volcanoes , all the significant parameters are found to be negative, indicating that these three types of disasters constitute substantial negative motivators for prospective visitors. A more detailed examination of coefficients highlights that volcanic eruptions appear most deterring to international tourists. This circumstance could be related to the severity of the damage caused by volcanic eruptions, including potentially irreversible damage to infrastructure or the complete loss of a natural asset. For the occurrence of an eruption, and for every increase in the number of deaths (for every 1000 people), affected (in millions of people) and costs (in millions of US$), there will be a decrease in international tourists to the destination between 1.07% and 1.32%, 2.13%–1.78% and 4.51%–3.44%, respectively (according to whether the 6 or 12 months delay is considered).

Wildfires, Earthquakes, Industrial Accidents , and Storms present mixed effects on international tourist arrivals. For all types of disasters, and when economic costs are considered, a negative and significant relationship is found. In other words, the economic damage from these events, for example to infrastructure, is likely to reduce tourist arrivals. Wildfires appear as the second most detrimental type of disaster when measured in economic damage, leading to an expected fall of 0.03% of tourist arrivals for every million US$ cost associated with the disaster. Interestingly and perhaps paradoxically, a significant positive relationship is evident between the number of people affected by Wildfires and tourist arrivals. For every million affected people, an increase between 0.34% and 0.35% is expected. Consequently, and considering the negative effect of economic damage mentioned above, the net effect of Wildfires on tourism should consider the two different types of disaster impact measures. Earthquakes show a similar negative impact compared with Tsunamis (see above) in terms of the economic costs of the disaster, with falls around 0.002% for every million US$ cost. However, the other impact metrics do not show a negative relationship. In terms of number of fatalities, there is even an increase in tourism for the number of deaths per 1000 people by 0.002%. Thus, the overall impact of an earthquake is a combination of decreases in response to economic damage and number of deaths. Industrial Accidents and Storms show similar patterns in that there is a positive relationship between the number of fatalities and affected people, but a negative relationship between the economic impact of the disaster and tourism arrivals. For example, for Storms there is a decrease in arrivals by 0.003% for every million US$ cost but increases between 0.018% and 0.024% for every death/1000 people and between 0.018%-0.024% and 0.03–0.04% for every million people affected.

Droughts emerged as the only type of disaster that did not show a significantly negative relationship between disaster cost and tourism, but instead arrivals were significantly linked to the two other disaster impact metrics. More specifically, for every death/1000 people an increase higher than 1% is obtained, while for every million people affected a decrease of −0.001% is estimated. It is perhaps not surprising that the relationship between disaster costs and tourism is not significant for Drought . Overall, it is less likely that drought conditions produce direct impacts on tourism-relevant infrastructures and supplies, as tourism businesses might absorb the extra costs of supplying water during water constrained times. There could be indirect costs, for example due to more expensive food supplies, but such effects do not seem to result in significant changes in visitation.

Epidemics , Landslides , Cold waves , and Heat waves do not achieve significant results for any of the six regressions considered, and for this reason they were not considered in the final estimation presented in Table 1 . In the case of Epidemics , and Landslides we should note that these two variables have a strong structural component. For instance, epidemic episodes, such as Cholera, Dengue, and Ebola, as well as land movements with consequences on people are recurrent in the same types of countries at different times, but rarely are these factors extended to other countries. In a similar way Rosselló, Santana-Gallego, and Waqas (2017) evaluated the effects of Dengue, Ebola, Malaria, and Yellow Fever on international tourism flows showing how these diseases have a strong structural component and are often recurrent in the same countries.

The case of Cold and Heat waves is different. It should be noted how travel booking decisions (especially in international travel) are often taken months in advance, when no reliable weather predictions exist. Although it is possible to cancel travel plans in case of extreme temperatures, tourist might assume the conditions are temporary and unlikely to impact their trip. In terms of longer lasting risk perceptions of a destination, heat or cold waves might not be seen as particularly threatening, and hence easily forgotten. Visitors might expect that their tourism service provider is dealing with adverse conditions, for example by providing air conditioning or heating. Instead, extreme temperatures are more likely to impact local people (e.g., farmers) leading to wider economic damage (but not attributed to tourism). Regarding the distribution of the potential effects of each one of the disasters during the next 12 months (columns from one to three) and during the next 6 months (columns from four to six) no significant but only minor differences are found. Additionally, different attempts to discriminate disaster by geographical regions did not yield significantly different conclusions.

As mentioned earlier and in order to explore the bidirectional effects between disaster events and tourism flows, a second research strategy is implemented. Based on two initial general regressions (one for each of the delay periods considered), including all the considered variables, a reduction is undertaken in order to get the specific regressions presented in Table 5 .

Regarding the distribution of the potential consequences of each type of disaster during the next 12 months (columns one to three) and during the next 6 months (columns four to six), in general, no significant differences are found. With the exception of Floods and Storms , the coefficients for the remaining disasters (in absolute terms) are higher for the 12 month impact regressions than for the 6 months ones, thus, indicating that effects are probably better captured by longer time lags. In contrast, the effects of Floods and Storms seem to have a shorter life span, since the 6 month timeframe captures a higher impact.

The analysis of the different disaster impacts reveals how, on the one hand, costs always present a negative relationship with international tourist arrivals. This confirms that the economic costs of a disaster are an important measure for tourism managers, probably because of the inherent damage to local infrastructure that is captured. On the other hand, the impact of some types of disaster evaluated in terms of deaths shows a positive relationship with tourist arrivals. This does not mean that the occurrence of these disasters will have a net positive effect on the arrival of tourists, since the negative effect of the associated costs must be taken into account when deriving an overall estimate of impact. As outlined earlier, the number of deaths could be related with the arrival of people for humanitarian reasons, or with a flow of people who travel to see (and support) friends and relatives affected by the event. This could present a significant effect in relative terms for those countries with a low base level of arrivals. The total effect also should consider the impacts of the number of affected people that for some disasters have a reducing effect ( Droughts, Tsunamis and Volcanoes ), while for others there seems to be an increase in the number of tourists ( Industrial Accidents, Wildfires and Storms ).

5. Discussion and conclusions

Natural disasters and unexpected events have wide reaching effects on all spheres of life, including tourism. From a theoretical point of view, it has been assumed that a negative relationship between disasters and inbound tourism dominates (e.g. a Cró & Martins, 2017a ). However, because of some motivating factors identified in the literature, and due to the methodology and definition used by the UNWTO in collecting international tourist arrivals, an increase in visitation after a disaster seems also plausible.

The number of inbound tourism arrivals directly impacts the performance of the national tourism industry, and ultimately the government, especially in countries where tourism is a major contributor to the national economy and fiscal revenue ( Massidda & Mattana, 2013 ). It is therefore of great importance for policymakers to improve their understanding of how disaster events affect visitor demand. This research highlights the need to consider different types of disasters and their varied consequences when assessing the consequences for tourism.

5.1. Significance of different types of disaster impacts

The empirical research presented in this paper draws on two sets of data to explore in depth the relationship between international tourist arrivals and global disasters, measured through three different impact metrics (costs, deaths and affected people). The effects that these different disasters might have on inbound flows at a national level were investigated though a gravity model, estimated by panel data with destination-fixed effects and using yearly data. By doing so, spurious potential determinants related to the destination but not the disaster can be avoided. As a result, however, recurrent disasters affecting the same destination and those with a very short-run effect have not been captured.

Findings of this analysis provide evidence that the economic consequences of a disaster in a particular country generally affect international tourism arrivals negatively. This is likely due to damages to infrastructure, key attractions and a wider weakening of the economy in the host country. All of these reduce the destination ability to cater for tourism, undermine investment into tourism supply, and reduce destination attractiveness, at least in the short-term.

At the same time, the analysis reveals that evaluating the tourism impacts of a disaster in terms of deaths and affected people is more ambiguous. Our research found a dominance of positive effects in the case of deaths related to a disaster. Thus, whilst disaster damage seems to prevent tourists to visit the affected destination, the number of fatalities and affected people seem to be less of a deterrent. Tourists may not see a risk to their own safety. Also, there could be an increase in tourism for some disasters due to the arrival of humanitarian ‘tourists’ and people visiting friends and relatives. Whilst generally, this observation might be testimony to tourism resilience, and indeed reassuring for destination managers, there may be situations where continuous tourism demand after a disaster is hindering recovery works or impacting the well-being of residents. More research on ‘optimum’ recovery timeframes that take into account resident needs, would be useful (e.g. Okuyama, 2018 ).

5.2. Reductions in demand differ for disaster types

It is useful for decision makers to understand that not all disasters cause similar impacts. The comparison of different disaster types showed, for example, that volcanic eruptions typically cause the most significant and substantial negative impact on tourism. Specifically, for every million people affected by an eruption a fall between 1.7% and 2.1% in the international tourism arrivals is expected, if a six-month period or a twelve –month period is considered, respectively. Other disasters have smaller and shorter-term impacts (e.g. Floods and Storms ). Furthermore, floods and tsunamis are detrimental without nuance, although it is difficult to discerne whether the negative effect is due to the possible destruction or disablement of infrastructure or to the negative image of the destination generated by these types of event.

When a destination is affected by a wildfire, an earthquake, an industrial accident, a storm or a drought, mixed effects may be expected. For example, when these types of disasters result in economic damage, a negative and significant relationship can be established, indicating that damage to infrastructure and built assets, and maybe business capability, is likely to reduce tourist arrivals. Finally, this research revealed that some types of events are unlikely to have a major effect on arrivals, for example an unexpected epidemic, a landslide, a cold wave and a heat wave. It should be noted how these natural disasters are characterized by little or no impact on infrastructure and no long-term risk to tourists after the event has finished.

5.3. Managerial implications

Natural disasters and unexpected events are traumatic experiences for the resident population and may cause lasting damage to destination infrastructures, which requires adequate and adaptive tourism management ( Hystad & Keller, 2008 ). Strategies used to predict natural disasters and mitigate hazard risks in the first place need to be deployed to minimize the impacts. Examples include the implementation of appropriate building codes, zoning regulations, and emergency training and preparedness for key stakeholders. New policies and practices may require additional resources, but investments into preparedness are likely to generate positive returns in the long term. In general, the empirical results in this paper confirm that disaster events are challenging news for tourism managers who need to deal with an unexpected fall in tourism demand. Clearly, economic damage from an unexpected event leads to some reductions in tourist arrivals. In those cases, efforts by destination managers should focus on the recovery of necessary infrastructure and business capability. Proactive planning, for example around business continuity, business support networks, and recovery assistance programs, could accelerate this effort ( Hystad & Keller, 2008 ). Leadership may come from government agencies, destination management organizations, or businesses themselves. Related research in New Zealand revealed that leadership is “mainly provided by tourism stakeholders with a community-value orientation, and to a lesser extent by those who are mainly business-driven” ( Hughey & Becken, 2016 , p. 69). In other words, response and recovery is often led by individuals who have a strong commitment to, and engagement with, the affected community.

For some events, it is not necessarily the economic damage that is the most significant impact, but it could be the number of people affected or killed. For some disaster types, for example wildfires and storms, this research even established a positive impact. The positive relationship between number of tourists and affected people of fatalities by some disasters implies that these can attract visitors to the destination, a circumstance that should be taken into account by the managers of the destination. There are many different reasons why visitors might want to visit a destination that had been affected by a disaster (e.g. Rucińska & Lechowicz, 2014 on dark tourism), and understanding this non-orthodox typology of visitor types could be useful for destination managers. Regardless, marketing activities have to be designed with great care to attract the right types of visitors at the right time, considering potentially ongoing limitations around tourism capacity ( Okuyama, 2018 ; Orchiston & Higham, 2014 ). Marketing campaigns implemented by businesses, local tourist destinations or national tourism bureaus should ideally align in their messaging and magnitude, implying a particular need for vertical integration following a disaster ( Hughey & Becken, 2016 ).

5.4. Limitations

This research has several limitations, including the availability, accuracy and granularity of data, which is outside the control of the research team. It could be argued that some impacts on tourism are significant, yet short-lived. Given that the data used here is provided on an annual basis, short-term effects are likely to be missed or under-estimated in this research. Besides the limitations about the estimation method and the nature of the data of the UNWTO we have imposed a homogenization for each disaster. That means that a specific disaster in a developed country has the same effect than in an less developed one. In reality, this might not be the case. Consequently, results obtained in this paper should be considered as average responses. Future research should further explore this matter and investigate if differences among countries in reference to their level of development exist. Our attempt to discriminate the different disaster by region did not obtain significant results. Future research on the positive impacts of certain types of disaster consequences would also be beneficial in developing a potential tourist typology consisting of ‘dark tourism’ segments, humanitarian arrivals or other presently unidentified markets.

Author contribution

Jaume Rosselló-Nadal as an expert in tourism demand modelling and the quantitative analysis of tourism has contributed with the knowledge of the specific literature of demand modelling and the identification of the gap in the literature. Susanne Becken as an expert in sustainable tourism and climatic change issues has contributed with the knowledge of the specific literature of natural hazards and potential effects on tourism and Maria Santana Gallego as an expert within the fields of gravity models in a special way in the design of the methodology and in the exploitation of the results. He has also been responsible for the first model estimations.

Acknowledgements

We acknowledge the Agencia Estatal de Investigación (AEI) and the European Regional Development Funds (ERDF) for its support to the project<ECO2016-79124-C2-1-R> (AEI/ERDF, EU) and UNWTO Statistics Department for kindly providing us with the tourist data for this study. We also wish to thank participants to the 8th International Conference on Tourism Management & Related Issues.

Biographies

Jaume Rosselló-Nadal has a PhD in Business and Economics, is Full Professor at the Universitat de les Illes Balears (Spain) and Adjunct Professor at Griffith Institute for Tourism (Australia). His research interests include tourism demand modelling and environmental issues with special interest in climatic change issues. Jaume has led different research projects in Spain and Europe.

Dr Susanne Becken is a Professor of Sustainable Tourism at Griffith University, Australia. Susanne has led a large number of research programmes and consulting projects in Asia Pacific in the area of climate change, risk management and sustainable tourism. She contributes through various industry and Government advisory roles and panels, and is on the editorial boards of nine tourism journals.

Maria Santana-Gallego is PhD in Economics and Assistant Professor in the Department of Applied Economics, University of the Balearic Islands, Spain. She teaches tourism economics and macroeconomics. Her research interests include quantitative analysis of tourism and gravity models.

1 EM-DAT can be downloaded free of charge from http://www.emdat.be .

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Rocked by Natural Disasters, These Destinations Are Now Ready For Tourists

From hurricanes to mudslides and earthquakes, natural disasters seemed to be on the rise last year, these destinations are beautiful and resilient.

Natural disasters—from hurricanes to mudslides and earthquakes—seemed to be on the upswing in 2017, often with devastating effects. Storms in the U.S. alone racked up an estimated $306 billion in damages—the costliest year ever, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration . Still, these estimates cannot fully account for the economic losses to an affected region, and the impacts can reverberate long after the initial damage, particularly if visitors change travel plans.

Travelers have the chance to participate directly in the revitalization of affected destinations by choosing to visit impacted regions. In the coming year, consider visiting these six destinations recovering from natural disasters in 2017.

Putumayo, Colombia

More than 320 people were killed when flooding rivers and a massive mudslide overtook the southern city of Mocoa, Colombia , in the early morning hours of April 1, 2017, the country’s worst natural disaster in years. While recovery and restoration efforts in the capital city of the Putumayo department are ongoing, nearby natural attractions remain unaffected. Head to the region to explore Santuario de Flora Plantas Medicinales Orito Ingi-Ande —a conservation area at the boundary of the Amazon and the Andes home to culturally significant plant species—and the cloud and oak forests within the country’s oldest national park, Cueva de los Guácharos .

Sonoma and Napa Counties, California

Some of the most destructive wildfires in California history ravaged 200,000 acres of wine country north of San Francisco in October. Blazes raged for weeks, claiming some 6,600 structures, and nearly two dozen lives. While some vineyards lost crops and others face smoke-tainted harvests, most of Sonoma and Napa counties’ grapes grow in low lying areas that did not burn. The tiny, centrally-located town of Headlsburg, is a good base for a Sonoma County wine-tour—all of the town’s tasting rooms and hotels are open for business. Headed to Napa? Stop in at the new Compline Restaurant & Wine Bar in downtown Napa for private wine classes or dinner pairings.

The Caribbean

Hurricanes Irma and Maria delivered a one-two-punch, overwhelming much of the Caribbean last fall. Some 40 percent of Puerto Rico remains without power. But, some islands—including Barbados , Antigua , Jamaica , and the Bahamas —weathered the storm better than others, and all of the affected Caribbean cruise ports have since reopened. Most places are eagerly anticipating the visitors they’ve come to expect for the December to May high season. There’s even a handful of new places to stay: the Quintessence Boutique Resort on Anguilla, Serenity at Coconut Bay on Saint Lucia, and the Jewel Grande Montego Bay Resort & Spa on Jamaica; Hodges Bay Resort and Spa on Antigua is set to open summer of 2018.

Coastal Texas

Hurricane Harvey drenched the Texas coast with trillions of gallons of water over five days in late August. In Corpus Christi, jumbled boats, sodden farms, and leveled homes made the news, and more than 200 miles north, residents of Houston paddled in floodwaters over freeways and through inundated urban landscapes in scenes that recalled New Orleans post-Katrina. While large swaths of the Texas coast are still recovering, Houston has proven resilient. Base yourself at a downtown hotel like the new 21-story high-rise Hotel Alessandra and take a tour to explore the underground tunnels that connect 95 downtown blocks, now back in business after the floods. Then, head out into the open for a stroll through Hermann Park ’s green space—it received only minor damage.

Mexico City, Mexico

Two high magnitude earthquakes rattled Mexico in 2017. The first, in early September, struck off the southern state of Chiapas, leaving nearly 100 dead. The second came under two weeks later, but this time the epicenter was just 75 miles south of more populous Mexico City, eventually killing more than 360 people. It was only a day after the original earthquake that Hurricane Katia made landfall in Veracruz state, causing a mudslide that killed two more people. Despite being hard hit, Mexico is a large country, and entire regions weren’t impacted by any of these natural disasters including the popular tourist areas of Cancun, Los Cabos, Riviera Nayarit, and Riviera Maya. Even in Mexico City, it’s back to (mostly) business as usual with many city hotels and museums—including the Museum of Anthropology , the Frida Kahlo Museum , and the Palacio de Bellas Artes —reopened after building inspectors declared them structurally sound.

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In May, unusually heavy monsoon rains bloated rivers in the southern part of Sri Lanka , triggering mudslides and burying homes and people. In 2016, similarly heavy rains caused landslides that buried three villages. Still, this charming country on the mend following decades of civil war, has a lot to offer—especially during the dry season. (In the southwest between December and March or from May to September in north and eastern regions). See the stunning beaches of Tangalla along the southeastern coast, then head inland to spot deer, sloth bears, leopard, and bathing elephants in Udawalawe National Park , or explore the impressive stone ruins in the ancient northern city of Anuradhapura.

Science and travel journalist Meghan Miner Murray is based in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. Follow her on Twitter.

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Tourism Review

ISSN : 1660-5373

Article publication date: 12 April 2023

Issue publication date: 21 November 2023

This study aims to track and integrate past research concerning how tourism might improve natural disaster management, detect thematic research areas and develop an agenda for future research.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a systematic literature review methodology, this research synthesises academic papers indexed in the Scopus, Web of Science and EBSCOhost (Hospitality & Tourism Complete) databases. A total of 34 articles published in peer-reviewed English journals were systematically selected for review and analysed using a thematic approach.

This review highlights a growing interest in the potential and value of tourism for disaster management. Eight key themes emerged in the review, including education and information communication about disasters; tourism facilities for disaster preparation; tourism resources in emergency conditions; livelihoods and economic recovery; disaster-related tourism attractions for recovery; destination re-branding and re-framing; community reinvigoration in tourism-driven disaster recovery; and special-interest tourism for recovery. A natural disaster management schematic empowered by tourism highlights tourism industry opportunities to positively impact the entire disaster management process.

Originality/value

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this work offers the first systematic review of the research on how tourism might support multiple stages of natural disaster management. This study thus complements and enriches extant literature reviews on the nexus between tourism and disaster management. The framework presents timely guidelines for planners, developers and other key stakeholders to leverage tourism initiatives to improve disaster management outcomes.

本研究旨在追溯和整合以往研究中关于旅游业如何提升自然灾害管理的实践和发现, 明确主要研究领域并提出未来研究议程。

通过系统文献综述方法, 本研究综合了Scopus, Web of Science和EBSCOhost（Hospitality & Tourism Complete）数据库中索引的学术论文。共有34篇发表在同行评审的英文期刊上的文章被系统地筛选出来, 随后使用主题分析方法进行分析。

文献综述发现, 学者和行业实践者对旅游业在灾害管理方面的潜力和价值越来越感兴趣。综述分析发现了八个关键领域：灾害的教育和信息交流; 旅游设施用于备灾; 旅游资源用于紧急情况; 生计和经济复苏; 灾难相关的旅游吸引物; 灾难地品牌重塑和重构; 旅游业驱动的社区灾后重振; 灾后重建中的特殊兴趣旅游。本文设计了由旅游业赋权的自然灾害管理示意图, 突出了旅游业对整个灾害管理进程产生的积极影响和潜在机会。

本文首次系统地回顾了旅游业如何支持多个自然灾害管理阶段的相关研究。此项研究补充和丰富了关于旅游业与灾害管理之间关系的现有文献综述。该框架为规划者、开发商和其他主要利益相关者在利用旅游举措来改善灾害管理方面提供了及时的指导方针。

Este estudio identifica e integra las investigaciones anteriores sobre cómo el turismo podría mejorar la gestión de desastres naturales, detecta áreas temáticas de investigación y elabora una agenda para la investigación futura.

Diseño/metodología

Usando una metodología de revisión sistemática de la literatura, esta investigación sintetiza artículos académicos indexados en las bases de datos Scopus, Web of Science y EBSCOhost (Hospitality & Tourism Complete). Se seleccionaron sistemáticamente un total de 34 artículos publicados en revistas inglesas con revisión por pares para su revisión y análisis mediante un enfoque temático.

Esta revisión pone de relieve el creciente interés por el potencial y el valor del turismo en la gestión de desastres. En la revisión surgieron ocho temas clave: la educación y la comunicación de información sobre desastres; instalaciones turísticas para la preparación ante desastres; recursos turísticos en condiciones de emergencia; medios de subsistencia y recuperación económica; atracciones turísticas relacionadas con los desastres para la recuperación; cambio de marca y replanteamiento del destino; revitalización de la comunidad en la recuperación de desastres impulsada por el turismo; y el turismo de interés especial para la recuperación. Un esquema de gestión de desastres naturales potenciado por el turismo pone de relieve las oportunidades de la industria turística para influir positivamente en todo el proceso de gestión de desastres.

Originalidad/valor

Este trabajo ofrece la primera revisión sistemática de la investigación sobre cómo el turismo podría apoyar las múltiples etapas de la gestión de desastres naturales. Este estudio complementa y enriquece la bibliografía existente sobre el nexo entre el turismo y la gestión de desastres. El marco presenta directrices oportunas para que los planificadores, los promotores y otras partes interesadas clave aprovechen las iniciativas turísticas para mejorar los resultados de la gestión de desastres.

• Disaster management
• Natural disasters
• Systematic literature review
• Gestión de desastres
• Desastres naturales
• Revisión sistemática de la literatura

Zhang, Y. , Moyle, B. , Dupré, K. , Lohmann, G. , Desha, C. and MacKenzie, I. (2023), "Tourism and natural disaster management: a systematic narrative review", Tourism Review , Vol. 78 No. 6, pp. 1466-1483. https://doi.org/10.1108/TR-08-2022-0377

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Tourism and Natural Disaster Recovery: Keys to Success

Destination stewardship report – autumn 2023 (volume 4, issue 2).

This post is from the Destination Stewardship Report ( Autumn 2023, Volume 4, Issue 2 ), a publication that provides practical information and insights useful to anyone whose work or interests involve improving destination stewardship in a post-pandemic world.

Before and after pictures of Durbar square in Kathmandu. [Photo courtesy of National Geographic]

What is the impact of natural disasters on tourism and how can the tourism industry itself promote recovery for the destination? Examining Nepal’s recovery following the Gorkha Earthquake in 2015, Jacqueline Harper shares insights into the role of tourism in disaster recovery, emphasizing the significance of swift recovery, effective destination marketing, strategic partnerships, and the opportunity to build back better through sustainable and community-focused approaches.

How tourism can help a tourist destination recover after a natural disaster

In the wake of the Maui fires, earthquakes in Morocco, a new 2023 quake in remote western Nepal, and other recent natural and manmade disasters, tourism officials have been contemplating when to resume their tourism operations. This dilemma is not uncommon. Re-opening too soon can endanger tourists’ safety; add pressure to already taxed infrastructure, accommodations, and resources; and re-traumatize residents when tourists ask how they were affected by the disaster. On the other hand, tourism and the resumption of business activities is urgently needed to fuel the speedy recovery and rebuilding of the devastated local economy.

The Gorkha Earthquake in Nepal is a case study of how tourism can aid in disaster recovery. On April 25th, 2015, the Gorkha region of Nepal was the epicenter of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake. Hundreds of aftershocks occurred for months afterward, leaving a serious impact on the country’s infrastructure, including many heritage sites that double as tourist sites. Thousands of people were injured and died. Damages cost approximately $7 billion USD, and impacted about one-third of the population. In terms of tourist arrivals, after 6 months, visitor numbers had declined by 42%.

I spent 3 months in the Kathmandu Valley researching how tourism can help a tourist destination recover after a natural disaster and gained four key insights:

1. There was a quick time frame for tourism to return to normal levels.

Tourist Arrival Numbers from 2010 to 2022. [Tourist Arrival Numbers received from the Ministry of Culture, Tourism & Civil Aviation]

2. Destination marketing played a critical role in the post-disaster tourism recovery.

Prince Harry visiting Patan Durbar Square to view ongoing efforts to restore one of Nepal’s cultural treasures. [Photo courtesy of Jacqueline Harper]

NTB invited celebrities in key market groups to come to Nepal and highlight its tourism offerings: Jackie Chan, David Beckham, and Prince Harry, to name a few. This sparked conversation in the international news and demonstrated to international markets that Nepal was once again open for tourism. Additionally, representatives from NTB were sent on international roadshows to promote Nepal to tourism agencies, who would then promote traveling to Nepal within their own countries.

Norie Quintos, a communications and content consultant, posing in front of an “I am in Nepal Now” sign in June 2019, while visiting the Himalayan Travel Mart conference. [Photo courtesy of Jacqueline Harper]

Between 2017 and 2019, NTB organized travel conferences inviting international press and journalists to come to Nepal and experience a location, such as Pokhara. In turn, they would write about it, and promote Nepal to foreign audiences. These different methods allowed the NTB to rewrite the narrative of the country post-disaster and promote tourism once again.

3. Partnerships are key to disaster and tourism recovery.

The success of Nepal’s disaster recovery was also due to partnerships. NTB worked with news outlets like BBC, CNN, and TripAdvisor to get the message out that one could safely travel to Nepal. They also had financial and technical support from other countries like Japan International Cooperation Agency, China Aid, USAID to rebuild heritage sites. International Knowledge of tourism recovery came from PATA, the World Bank, and UNWTO to help with the tourism recovery. International partnerships were key for rebuilding and financing the recovery, but also marketing the country to foreign markets.

4. Disasters are an opportunity to build back better within the tourism industry.

Tourists and locals make their way around the Bouddha Stupa in Kathmandu, Nepal. [Photo courtesy of Jacqueline Harper]

For example, New Zealand’s response to the Christchurch earthquake, with its focus on sustainability and community involvement, is a prime example of (1) sustainable rebuilding, (2) community engagement, (3) promotion of local businesses, and (4) resilience and adaptation.

• After the devastating earthquakes in 2010 and 2011, Christchurch embarked on a journey of sustainable rebuilding. This involved not just reconstructing damaged infrastructure but doing so with an emphasis on eco-friendly and resilient designs. Many buildings incorporated modern earthquake-resistant features and energy-efficient technologies.
• A critical aspect of the recovery was the involvement of the local community. Residents were encouraged to participate in the decision-making process, allowing them to have a say in how their city would be reimagined. This engagement ensured that the rebuilt city reflected the desires and needs of the people who call it home.
• In the aftermath of the disaster, there was a concerted effort to support and promote local businesses. The “Shop the Sirens” campaign encouraged residents and visitors to shop at local stores, helping these businesses recover and thrive.
• The earthquake catalyzed Christchurch to become more resilient in the face of future disasters. The city implemented comprehensive disaster preparedness and risk reduction strategies to mitigate the impact of any future seismic events. By following the path of building back better, destinations can not only recover but emerge stronger, ensuring that the benefits of tourism extend to all and that they are better prepared to face any future challenges that come their way.

About the Author

Jacqueline Harper is a Masters of Environmental Studies in Geography student at the University of Waterloo in Canada. Her masters research focuses on looking at the role social and cultural capital plays in aiding tourism recovery in the Kathmandu Valley post-Gorkha earthquake. As an inspiring destination stewardship practitioner, Jacqueline hopes to work in tourism after grad school. As such, she has volunteered with the Destination Stewardship Center, researched the impacts of cruise vs layover tourism, and interned at the Center for Responsible Travel and Solimar International.

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Impact of Natural Disasters on the Tourism Industry

01/02/2014 03:02

Source: Tourismembassy

Category: Tourismology by Tourismembassy

Tourism has always been regarded as the impetus that brings in new business opportunities and economic development for a region. As an industry, there are several factors that have an impact on tourism both positively and negatively. One such aspect is the natural disasters and climate changes that occur in a place unexpectedly.

The impact of natural disasters has been more profound during the last few years and this can be attributed to the changing weather patterns around the world as well as the increased number of tourist spots. Today, more and more natural reserves and areas that were once inhabitable are being made accessible to attract tourists. Though this gives a boost to the local tourism, it also increases the impact of natural disasters. In fact, natural disasters cause many tourist destinations to lose their beauty, culture and economy for a temporary or extended period of time. The scale of the damage depends to a large extent on the fury of the natural disaster. For example, during the 2004 Tsunami, the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India suffered heavily. Located in the Indian Ocean off the eastern coast of India, these islands were attracting large numbers of tourists due to its untouched natural beauty.

During the tsunami, the Car Nicobar islands were the worst hit. Many islands have been washed away and some like the Trinket have been split into two. This has completed disrupted tourism and today, there is nothing in these areas. Even after a decade, the remaining islands are still looking to salvage whatever is possible and there is no scope for the tourism industry anytime in the near future.

Other than the Nicobar Islands, there are other areas around the world that have been impacted by natural disasters, though to a lesser extent. Ironically, it is the developing countries that are more affected than the developed ones because the local economy relies heavily on tourism for the livelihood of its people. Also, this effect of natural disaster does not stop with the local economy; rather it spreads throughout the country's economy.

In this context, it is important for the tourism industry to take into account the possibility of natural disasters to ensure business sustainability. It is a good idea to avoid creating tourism sites in areas that are likely to be affected by natural disasters due to their geographic location. Typical examples of such places are the low-lying islands in the Pacific Ocean. When these islands are chosen, high-tides, tsunamis and other ocean disturbances have the potential to cause enormous amount of damage to the place as well as the local people and tourists. This is why native people avoid such islands and the tourism companies should also follow suit. Besides choosing tourism sites, it is important for tourism companies to have a disaster emergency plan in place. This will make it easy for the place as a whole to recover faster from the disaster and at the same time, it will mitigate the damage from the disaster.

On the positive side, natural disasters have increased tourism in some places. An example of such a place is the Cornish village of Boscastle. This place witnessed the worst flash floods in 2004. A record amount of 200 mm of rain fell in 24 hours and everything in the place were destroyed. Fortunately, there were no casualties as all the people were airlifted to safety. Within the next few years, the central government spent millions of dollars in reconstruction which brought in more jobs and businesses. Also, the images and videos of Boscastle were shown in the media and this brought publicity to the place, which in turn increased the number of tourists. In short, the flash floods proved to be a boon for Boscastle.

However, such instances are far and few. In most cases, natural disasters have a negative impact on the economy and on the people who depend on it for livelihood. For this reason, it is important to have a disaster plan in place when nature strikes with her fury. A better option is to adapt to the change because natural disasters are inevitable and uncontrollable. If a disaster causes physical changes, then it is best to go with the change, which means the tourism industry should be prepared to make changes to its business. An example of such a place is Montserrat, a Caribbean Island located south east of Puerto Rico. This place was once thriving as a tourist destination until the Soufriere Hills volcano erupted in 1995. The volcanic ash buried entire streets and tourism declined. However today, it offers volcano tourism where tourists can walk around the main city to explore the ruins. This has been immensely popular, therefore, tourism companies should learn to adapt to changes that occur as a result of natural disasters.

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Global Tourism Resilience Day: Recommendations for Crisis and Disaster Management in the Tourism Sector

February 16, 2024 por Juliana Bettini - Denise Levy - Luciana Sagi Leave a Comment

We live in a constantly changing world, making it essential to prepare for facing challenges in contemporary life. Tourism is a sector that has been affected by various crises and disasters over the years, ranging from extreme weather events to economic and political crises. In the past three years alone, the COVID-19 pandemic, large-scale forest fires, and international conflicts have significantly impacted the sector. In this context, resilience is crucial. Being prepared and mitigating impacts are fundamental premises for managing tourist destinations, which are increasingly exposed to adverse situations capable of destabilizing or paralyzing the sector.

In the case of Brazil, despite the evident relevance of resilience in tourism, gaps have been identified related to the availability of objective and operational information to support decision-making by public and private actors. To help close these gaps, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Ministry of Tourism of Brazil developed an educational booklet titled “Towards Tourism Resilience: Crisis and Disaster Management,” which provides an overview of how crisis and disaster management in Brazilian tourism has evolved over the years and indicates paths that tourist destinations can follow to achieve greater resilience. This roadmap can be applied not only in Brazil but also in other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean. In this blog post, we share some of the main topics addressed in the booklet.

Crises, Disasters, and Climate Change

Crises and disasters generate instability, problems, and various negative impacts, making it essential to take necessary measures to minimize damages and, if possible, prevent them before they occur. However, first, we must understand the differences between these concepts, which are generally related to the root of the problem. In this regard, there is a level of consensus that establishes that when the cause is an internal event, such as a lack of management capacity or failure to adapt to change, we speak of a crisis; when the cause is something beyond our control and relates to external aspects, we speak of a disaster [1] .

Different types of crises and disasters can affect the tourism sector, both at the destination and organizational levels. Based on Ritchie’s framework (2009) [2] , the following categories are identified:

• Disasters associated with physical or natural, biological, and technological phenomena, such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Political crises and disasters, such as the war between Russia and Ukraine in 2022.

• Economic crises, such as the global financial crisis of 2008.  

• Internal conflicts, violence, and insecurity, such as tourist kidnappings and robberies.

• Mega-disasters, such as the Fukushima nuclear plant accident in 2011.

When discussing crises and disasters, addressing climate change is also essential. Climate change involves long-term changes in temperatures and climate patterns that can be natural or directly or indirectly attributed to human activity, leading to various social, cultural, environmental, and economic impacts, triggering several crises and disasters. The tourism sector, on one hand, contributes to climate change (e.g., through transportation-related emissions) but is also highly vulnerable to these changes, such as increased incidence of extreme weather events and rising sea levels, among others.

Resilience refers to the capacity of a system to adapt and recover from adverse situations. There is an increasing need to comprehensively address measures focused on climate change in the tourism sector, as well as measures designed to prevent crises and disasters, aiming for greater resilience. In tourism, this means being able to face and overcome crises and disasters, minimizing their impacts, and strengthening the sector. Thus, tourist destinations and businesses can recover more quickly from crises and disasters, maintaining their competitiveness and long-term sustainability.

Prevention, Planning, and Learning

To promote resilience, a Crisis and Disaster Management Plan in Tourism must be developed, focusing on a destination, company, or organization. Some common characteristics relevant when elaborating such plans include:

• Shared responsibility matrix: Crises and disasters affecting tourism can also impact other sectors, populations, infrastructure, and territories in general. Therefore, it is essential for various key actors to be involved in the crisis planning and management process. A common practice observed worldwide is the creation of specific committees or councils, mostly intergovernmental and intersectoral.

• Preparation for crisis and disaster situations: Being “ready” is important, which involves having plans in place but also conducting crisis and disaster response exercises, training teams and professionals operating in destinations, and establishing mechanisms for collecting and disseminating information and alerts.

• Risk identification: Involves mapping and evaluating potential situations that may arise, as well as the relative probability of occurrence and their potential to become crises or disasters. It is the starting point in crisis and disaster management models and systems. It may include specific territorial information related to risks and identify their impacts on specific groups (such as tourists, for example).

• Risk mitigation: Based on risk mapping, specific measures should be established to minimize expected damages, consequences, and impacts for the various key actors identified. The selection of measures should consider, among other factors, the availability of resources, local capacities, and be conducted in a participatory manner. Risk mitigation measures in the tourism sector may include support structures for evacuation, transmission of informational alerts, travel suspension recommendations, etc.

• Formulation of rapid responses: These are dedicated to the immediate consequences of an event, to be implemented in a still chaotic phase. Initially operational in nature, they will focus on controlling damage to human life and property/infrastructure. They may include activating internal crisis and disaster management committees, collecting and sharing information about the situation’s status, monitoring its evolution.

• Establishing minimums for the recovery and resumption phase: Focused on restoring the operation of the destination and/or organizations safely and to the minimum required quality. It includes actions related to supporting the continuity of tourist service operations, restoring damaged infrastructure, communication, and implementing marketing strategies.

The complete educational booklet on which this article is based includes tools, instruments, and examples that can guide the definition of plans, measures, and actions aimed at improving the crisis and disaster management process in the sector, not only in Brazil but also in other destinations in Latin America and the Caribbean. The publication is available in Portuguese and in Spanish .

[1] Brent, Ritchie, Yawei Jiang (2019). A review of research on tourism risk, crisis and disaster management: Launching the annals of tourism research curated collection on tourism risk, crisis and disaster management, Annals of Tourism Research, Volume 79.

[2] Ritchie, B. W. (2009). Crisis and Disaster Management for Tourism. Channel View Publications.

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Juliana Bettini

Juliana es especialista en Turismo del Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID) y representa al BID en Brasil desde 2015. Lidera la cartera de proyectos financiados por el Banco en el sector turístico del país, además de trabajar en otros proyectos en América Latina y el Caribe. Con una trayectoria de 15 años en el sector turístico, ha dedicado gran parte de su carrera a la planificación estratégica de destinos y negocios turísticos ya los estudios de mercado sectoriales. Graduada en Turismo por la USP, tiene una especialización en Investigación de Mercados y una Maestría en Planificación y Gestión de Destinos por la Universidad de Alicante, España.

Denise Levy

Tem ampla experiência em temas ambientais e de manejo social na América Latina. Seu principal foco tem sido o planejamento do uso da terra e o financiamento da conservação da terra, como também as avaliações de impactos ambientais estratégicos. Nos últimos anos, o setor de turismo teve como foco a proteção costeira e marinha, e o desenvolvimento urbano sustentável. Antes de fazer parte do time do Banco, Denise Levy foi gerente de programa conservação de terras privadas do The Nature Conservancy, no Brasil. É graduada em Direito pela Universidade Federal do Paraná, possui doutorado em Análise de Políticas Públicas, pela Universidade de Illinois, em Chicago, e mestrado em Ciências e Políticas Ambientais, pela Universidade Johns Hopkins. Denise atualmente é especialista ambiental sênior da Divisão de Recursos Naturais, Agricultura, Turismo e Desastres Naturais do BID.

Luciana Sagi

Consultora para el desarrollo estratégico y resiliente de destinos turísticos y áreas protegidas, trabaja hace más de 20 años en el sector, siendo parte del equipo de más de 60 proyectos en Brasil y en el continente Africano. Fue Secretaria Adjunta de Turismo de la ciudad de Maceió (Alagoas, Brasil). Es líder de la iniciativa Sábados Azuis, proyecto de innovación social en turismo, e investigadora del Centro de Estudios en Turismo y Desarrollo Social de la Universidad de São Paulo (USP). Tiene formación en turismo, Maestría en Hospitalidad y es Doctoranda en Ciencias Sociales por la USP.

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Improving disaster management in international tourism

• Published: 14 March 2023
• Volume 74 , pages 1423–1437, ( 2024 )

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• Kyoo-Man Ha   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-2087-5707 1  

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Despite strong interest in tourism during the pandemic, frameworks of disaster management have not been rigorously provided for the international tourism field. The present research aimed to study how to improve disaster management in international tourism toward mitigating human suffering and economic damages. Qualitative content analysis was used as the key methodology in investigating passive and active disaster management. These two approaches were compared considering tourists, tourism industry, regional governments, and international organizations as variables. The main finding has been that stakeholders must shift from passive to active disaster management, while strategically addressing networking, the disaster management cycle, and local education, among other factors. This study provided a systematic framework of disaster management by studying not only the supply but also the demand side in international tourism.

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1 Introduction

The occurrence of disasters has increased sharply in the 21st century due to climate change, complicated political situations, and other environmental or human factors. Despite disaster management measures, the impacts of disasters have not been significantly decreased in many regions (Mantyniemi 2012 ; Patel 2022 ). Recent examples include the extreme drought in India, wildfires in California and Australia, earthquakes in South America, active shooting in the United States, terrorist attacks in the Middle East, Asia, and Europe, Russian attack on Ukraine, soccer stadium stampede in Indonesia, and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in the world.

The complex circumstances in the occurrence of disasters are not static but are continually evolving. Many analysis perspectives have been applied in this area of study, often with difficulty, by considering the appropriate process, strategy, and tools, among others. The majority of those perspectives have focused on the specific interests in the region, thus limiting the scope of research. Hence, there is a need to develop frameworks (or rigorous macro-perspectives) to improve disaster management in the international community.

The number of international tourists has increased considerably in recent years as shown in Table  1 , while a number of countries have eased COIVID-19 restrictions. International tourism involves many outdoor-oriented activities, unfamiliar accommodation, and crowded transportation routes, among others. Hence, it has been disproportionately impacted by multiple disasters (Becken and Hughey 2013 ). Considering that international tourism is vulnerable to the impact of various disasters, the relationship between disaster management and international tourism therefore gains importance.

Given the above discussion, it makes sense to create a linkage between the structure of disaster management and the core of international tourism. A key research question is: what framework would facilitate the role of disaster management in international tourism? Similarly, the objective of this study is to investigate how disaster management can support international tourism toward the ultimate goal of decreasing not only human suffering and economic damages but also the psychological impacts of disasters.

Toward this objective, two opposite disaster management approaches in the field of international tourism are examined, namely, passive and active disaster management. These are analyzed considering four variables: tourists, tourism industry, regional governments, and international organizations. The key finding is that there is a need to shift from passive to active disaster management in international tourism in relation to these four variables, while strategically embracing multiple networks, the disaster management cycle, disaster resistance, local education, long-term plans, and marketing, among other factors.

2 Literature survey

Two kinds of disasters are considered in the field of disaster management, namely, natural disasters and manmade emergencies (SAMHSA 2020 ). Natural disasters as adverse events are caused by processes that naturally occur on earth. They include earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, snowstorms, droughts, and climate change. Manmade emergencies result from negligent or deliberate human actions. They include maritime accidents, arson, terrorism, economic failure, and suicide. The present work considers mainly natural disasters but sometimes touches on manmade emergencies due to the interaction of the two types of disasters such as the outbreak of pandemic diseases.

Given that culture extensively includes both invisible values and visible materials, each disaster can be regarded as having its own culture (Dietrich 2016 ). Basically, each disaster has physical characteristics under the natural environment. In addition, a disaster occurs in relation to human society. In this context, a disaster is not neutral but rather may be mediated by human behavior or settlement. To deal with a disaster, the field needs to understand the culture of that disaster; otherwise, it would face much difficulty managing the disaster. Therefore, the disaster culture matters in this field.

While human beings intend to improve own life cycle, they have to invest for it via multiple ways (Wallmeier and Zainhofer 2006 ). As each individual or family member accumulates own savings under unique circumstances, he or she needs to wisely utilize them for living improvement or improvement of their life cycle. In doing so, many individuals are to invest for not only their local activities but also international activities (Goede and Berg 2018 ; Schenkenhofer 2022 ). Particularly these days, majority of people cannot enhance their life cycle without substantially figuring out strategies on their international activities.

Tourism is defined as travel not only for business but also for leisure, pleasure, or recreational purposes (Lickorish and Jenkins 1997 ). International tourism, in contrast to domestic tourism, refers to tourism that crosses national boundaries or borders. Considering that international tourism depends on various institutional structures as well as natural ecosystems, it involves the needs of local residents, the response of international visitors, and other environmental factors.

International tourism has two distinct effects. First, it promotes visible economic growth in both formal (e.g., works with regular wages and working hours) and informal (e.g., works without job security and high production value) sectors because it is able to generate substantial income and many jobs (Brida and Pulina 2010 ). International tourism as an economic activity or multiplier contributes not only to short-term but also to long-term economic growth. In this way, it actively utilizes both domestic and foreign investments.

Second, international tourism contributes to relieving the invisible psychological stresses of individuals (Korstanje and Ivanov 2012 ). Traveling to new locations or visiting favorite spots helps decrease the stress and monotony of daily life, especially for busy people. In other words, travel offers individuals a way to escape the stresses of everyday life and allows them a chance to embrace new people, interesting sights, and extraordinary experiences.

The impacts of various disasters in international regions are widespread. When a disaster occurs in a specific area, its impact does not stop in that specific location but rather extends globally (Maditinos and Vassiliadis 2008 ). Given that international tourism involves dynamic interactions in trade, finance, labor, technology, and other aspects, the impact of any disaster on international tourism is felt more strongly than ever. This phenomenon has been particularly noteworthy in the 21st century such as international travel bans during COVID-19 outbreak (Rossello et al. 2020 ; Vermeulen-Miltz et al. 2022 ). Thus, the issue of disaster management has become an essential aspect of international tourism or its flow.

The field of disaster management attempts to manage critical disasters in terms of its impacts on the public, which includes not only the general population but also individuals with special needs. The special needs population, including elderly, children, foreign-born individuals who may not speak the local language, and people with physical, mental, or sensory disabilities, has additional concerns before, during, and after a disaster. Considering that international tourism involves a language barrier, as in the case of foreign-born workers and international immigrants, international tourists may be considered as part of the special needs population.

To elaborate, international tourism has been evaluated as one of the businesses most vulnerable and susceptible to the impacts of disasters (UNISDR 2013 ). International tourists and tourist guides are frequently exposed to hazards, emergencies, disasters, and risks of danger because they visit rivers, mountains, remote islands, historical sites, old buildings, and other vulnerable environments. At the same time, international tourism is exposed to the influence of complicated political situations, personal insecurities, culture shock, unfamiliar environments, and adverse natural events.

Evidence of the influence of disasters on international tourism has been previously reported. For example, international arrivals to the United States dramatically went down 14% between the beginning of 2000 and the end of 2001, due mainly to the 9/11 terrorist attacks in 2001. A similar pattern happened until 2003. In Thailand, tourism accounted for 6% of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2002. After the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, the Thai GDP showed a sharp decrease in 2005, mainly due to a decrease in the number of international tourists. Also, international tourism revenues in 2020 significantly dropped in a few nations to include Spain, Greece, Malaysia, and Hong Kong as the result of COVID-19 outbreak (Korinth 2022 ; Peltomaki 2015 ).

Dark tourism (disaster tourism, grief tourism, or black tourism) is travel for the purpose of visiting or seeing the location of a disaster that has caused human losses, economic damages, or related suffering (Rucinska 2016 ). Dark tourism usually refers to morbid products, terrible experiences, and disturbing practices within the field of international tourism. However, it is supported by those who are keenly interested in natural disaster management, emotional failure, and landscape deformation following the occurrence of extreme events, as well as in historical sites associated with tragedy.

Dark tourism contradicts the traditional concept of international tourism, considering that typical international tourists prefer to visit pleasant and happy places. Nonetheless, by attracting tourists to disaster-impacted areas, dark tourism contributes to the process of disaster recovery (Wright and Sharpley 2016 ). Money spent by tourists in disaster areas will in all likelihood ultimately benefit the local economy and thus the survivors of the disasters. Moreover, they are able to help increase disaster awareness in their own communities.

The relationship between disaster management and international tourism is classified as a subject under either disaster management or tourism. The issue may be evaluated as a partial discipline in development studies because the complex interaction between disaster impacts and the tourism economy is somewhat related to community development and related management (Nagai 2012 ). By addressing both disaster management and international tourism, the issue may contribute to improved living conditions, economic reconstruction, regional development, and problem resolution in many local communities.

Several researches have been carried out on disaster management in the field of international tourism. Some studies examined how disasters negatively impact international tourism. Others focused on how to efficiently respond to the impacts of disasters. Various perspectives have been applied in analyzing disaster management in international tourism (Rindrasih et al. 2019 ). A number of researchers have directly pointed out negative impacts of COVID-19 outbreak to the economy (Seyfi et al. 2022 ). Nevertheless, few works have rigorously or systematically investigated the relationship between disaster management and international tourism.

The majority of the aforementioned researches focused on the supply aspect (i.e., government supply) while suggesting appropriate guidelines for disaster management in international tourism. Several researchers have attempted to explore how each stakeholder should provide personnel, resources, and strategies for international tourism during disaster recovery. In contrast, few works have studied the association between the supply and the demand aspect (i.e., actual needs of other stakeholders) of disaster management in tourism. Therefore, there is a need to study both the supply and the demand aspect of the issue.

Similarly, very little attention has been given to studying how disaster management comprehensively addresses international tourism as a framework, and vice versa (Faulkner 2001 ). In other words, few researchers have examined the framework of disaster management in international tourism. Without an appropriate framework for disaster management in international tourism, it would be difficult to study related subtopics, such as tourism employment, including the hospitality industry. Hence, a framework for disaster management in international tourism is a fundamental requirement for further research.

While delving into the main subject in appropriate research, the importance of open communication should be fully addressed (Yeh 2021 ). Considering the profound impacts of demand, supply, or any significant framework on the human society, the research must incorporate various materials and information on the basis of open communication. In other words, it should fully rely on the nature of multidisciplinary study on the way to providing own findings. However, closed communication or a single discipline may not flexibly fulfill the goal of research.

Similarly, it is necessary for this research to creatively reconstruct disaster management in international tourism, while helping the world to get back to the same pre-disaster situation or a better one (Kuckertz and Brandle 2022 ; Sun et al. 2022 ). As long as the research adheres to traditional ways, alternatives will not be so effective for impacted people or the new generation. Moreover, creative reconstruction here is not a complicated process, but the simple and clear method that will ultimately decrease the physical and social impacts of various disasters around international tourism.

3 Methodology

The key methodology applied in this work has been qualitative content analysis. All efforts have been exerted to meaningfully describe and interpret the appropriate qualitative data to achieve the study objective. The methodological procedure has included three steps, in the following order: determining which qualitative data are needed, creating not only analytical units but also thematic categories, and forming interpretations and conclusions based on the qualitative data (Intellspot.com 2021 ).

Several search engines have been used to obtain qualitative data, such as Google.com, Yahoo.com, EBSCOhost, Oxford University Press, ScienceDirect, and others. Among the keywords used in the search engines are “disaster management principles,” “natural disaster and tourism,” “disaster awareness,” “disaster management theories for tourism,” and “effects of tourism.” Two search engines, Google.com and EBSCOhost, have yielded the most qualitative data on the research topic. A major criterion of including or excluding a specific text has been whether it has been much related to international tourism, disaster management, and appropriate implications.

Effective disaster management requires determining which stakeholder is responsible for which task in the international tourism field (Morakabati et al. 2017 ). Without knowing which individual or institution is supposed to do a specific task, it would be difficult for the disaster management field to speed up the fulfillment of its ultimate goal of disaster mitigation. In particular, without a preplanned assignment for each stakeholder, it would be almost impossible for the field to respond to the occurrence of ever-changing disasters in relation to international tourism within a short period of time.

Analytical framework

As shown in Fig.  1 , four stakeholders in the field of international tourism have been identified as analytical units: tourists, tourism industry, regional governments, and international organizations. Tourists are those people who spend their own money to visit foreign places. Tourism industry includes all businesses that provide not only goods but also services for international tourism. Local governments support international tourism in their own administrative zones, whereas international organizations promote universally accessible tourism. These four stakeholders cover all aspects of international tourism.

Two distinct disaster management styles, as thematic categories, have been examined, namely, passive and active disaster management. Passive means induced or acted on by external influences, whereas active means characterized not by speculation but by action. Passive disaster management entails passively managing various disasters through external forces in the field of international tourism. Active disaster management involves actively managing disasters in the field through anticipation or recognition.

4 Passive disaster management

4.1 tourists.

The level of disaster awareness of people varies depending on multiple factors, such as disaster experiences, frequency of a specific disaster in the region, voluntary activities, and disaster training and exercises. Some individuals have a high level of disaster awareness and thus are familiar with emergency kits, emergency shelters, social distance and vaccination, and compulsory evacuation orders. Others have low awareness of hazards and thus do not apply any measures to prepare for disasters.

When individuals become international tourists in nonnative places, the level of their disaster awareness changes. Due to lack of time, space, and other measures, international tourists generally have a lower level of disaster awareness compared with local residents (Wilson et al. 2007 ). Given that international tourists maintain a low level of disaster awareness regardless of where they stay, they are more critically impacted by disasters compared with local residents because they are exposed to an unfamiliar environment.

4.2 Tourism industry

Some large tour companies have recently set up their own business continuity plans to include disaster operation measures toward achieving economic gains during the pandemic outbreak. Many of their smaller counterparts have not done the same due to lack of material and human resources, comparatively speaking. In general, some tour companies have still been reluctant to adopt a strategic response to disaster management due to labor shortage (Kamal-Chaoui 2022 ), preferring a reactive approach to the issue.

The tourism industry is based on intensive information, including exact tour locations, tour costs, and road maps. In the case of disaster management, information needs have been extraordinarily exacerbated around international tourism. The tour information is split among the travelers, local residents, and tour companies. In Costa Rica, for example, a number of international tourists died in 2019 because tour companies failed to provide information regarding tainted alcohol.

4.3 Regional governments

Regarding disaster management, many regional governments have placed a priority on coping with their own people (Tang and Feng 2018 ). In many senses, it is very natural for them to do so in terms of public policy. Nevertheless, many regional governments still struggle to take care of their own people in a disaster, for example, as in the case of African Americans after Hurricane Katrina devastated the U.S. city of New Orleans, Louisiana in 2005.

In setting up disaster management systems in administrative zones, many regional governments have begun to include in their multiple disaster operation plans not only the general population but also the special needs population. Nonetheless, the majority of regional governments have failed to include in those plans the category of international tourists, which can be considered as part of the special needs population. In fact, many regional governments still consider international tourism to be of low priority in the area of disaster management.

4.4 International organizations

The United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) promotes tourism as a means toward worldwide economic growth, environmental sustainability, and inclusive development (UNWTO 2023 ), whereas the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) deals with the various disasters occurring in many regions. However, these two agencies have yet to successfully address disaster management in international tourism. Thus far, each agency has focused on its specific tasks, which is tourism for the UNWTO and disaster issues for the UNDRR.

A similar pattern applies to international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). International tourism NGOs, such as the World Travel and Tourism Council and the International Ecotourism Society, have introduced cultural and conservation tourism without equal support for disaster management. By the same token, international disaster management NGOs, including the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies and the Global Disaster Information Network, support disaster management without considering its application in international tourism.

5 Active disaster management

5.1 tourists.

In recent years, information on disaster awareness in relation to international tourism has been increasingly provided for tourists. Nevertheless, many regions have not addressed the awareness, interest, or willingness of tourists to seek further information (Aliperti and Cruz 2018 ), like the case of Itaewon crowd crush in Korea in 2022. In this context, international tourists must develop appropriate communication strategies in local disaster management. Rather than waiting for potential information, tourists need to actively seek appropriate emergency messages, media coverage, and other risk information.

For example, when international tourists take a tour boat under windy weather, they must actively take measures to ensure their safety. If the captain of the tour boat does not enforce the local ordinance requiring the passengers to wear life vests, international tourists should demand that the captain provide the necessary safety equipment. If the weather turns violent, tourists should have the courage to refuse to get on the tour boat. In short, tourists should know when to say no, without hesitation, to dangerous situations.

5.2 Tourism industry

Not only small tour companies but also large ones need to adopt a more active strategy toward appropriate disaster management. Various tour companies have begun to address, at most, general safety management in international tourism, in particular without resorting to multi-hazard management (Thomas 2021 ). In setting up their own business continuity plans, these companies must specify how they would utilize their personnel and material resources to deal with all kinds of hazards and safety issues.

The tourism industry has to interconnect various types of information on all disasters, such as big data and information routes, through the use of advanced technology. Without real-time information on different places, the industry will continue to suffer from the impacts of disasters. The tourism industry also needs to remain in contact with local residents, who may provide more realistic and local information compared with advanced technology. Therefore, the industry must make use not only of advanced technology but also of local residents to achieve information connection.

5.3 Regional governments

Regional governments need to address the issue of diversity toward developing their own disaster management. Diversity refers to the varied and unique characteristics of individuals, which need to be understood, accepted, and respected. This includes differences among peoples, cultures, languages, and experiences. Thus, by adding the category of international tourism in their local disaster operation plans, regional governments could accomplish the goal of diversity as well as satisfy the needs of their people.

For example, when the Queensland government in Australia provided information on how to deal with various natural disasters, including bushfires, cyclones, and floods, it proactively encouraged even the international tourists (or the special needs population) visiting its rainforests, reefs, and coastlines to tune in to local mass media, log on to the government website, and immediately follow the advice provided (Queensland Government 2019 ). Similarly, the government motivated the field of international tourism to prepare for, respond to, and recover from the impacts of natural disasters.

5.4 International organizations

UN agencies, such as the UNWTO and UNDRR, need to build up more innovative leadership for disaster management in international tourism (Trainor and Velotti 2013 ). Leadership is undoubtedly intertwined with both disaster management and international tourism. Without an appropriate vision, neither disaster management nor international tourism can decrease the human losses, economic damages, and psychological impacts associated with disasters. The vision of UN agencies should be based on scientific evidence rather than imaginary scenarios.

It is necessary for international NGOs (including both international tourism and international disaster management NGOs) to incorporate disaster management into international tourism, and vice versa. For example, when international tourism NGOs issue tourism-related certificates, they need to include disaster management topics in their curricula. In addition, when international disaster management NGOs hold regional seminars, they should also invite experts on international tourism.

6 Major implications

The occurrence of dire disasters has changed many individuals’ behavioral intention or perceived likelihood such as insights into international tourism. Similarly, when current measures against the occurrence of multiple disasters around international tourism are not evaluated as effective, all stakeholders are to directly or indirectly work on behavioral change (Bae and Chang 2021 ). As analyzing that behavioral change on either disaster management or international tourism includes rapid or involuntary modification in behavior, it comes to support for fundamental adjustment in the field.

The above results clearly indicate that the mechanism of passive disaster management is inferior to that of active disaster management. The former must therefore be transformed into the latter, and the transition needs to be strategically addressed in the international tourism field. Such strategic approach involves identifying not only appropriate objectives but also practical means of transition (Ritchie 2004 ). Thus, after appropriate strategies have been planned and implemented, they must continue to be evaluated and improved.

An integrated strategy should to be applied to the relationship among the four major stakeholders (e.g., tourists, tourism industry, regional governments, and international organizations), given that one or two stakeholders alone would not be able to handle the transition. Instead, all four stakeholders should create multiple networks under an integrated strategy by systematically addressing strong resolution toward disaster management, disaster communication, pandemic management, tourism resources management, and proactive international tourism, among others.

Similarly, the transition should reflect the values of the people and the disaster-affected communities. In reality, the obstacles and alternatives in the field of international tourism will not be given the same priority; rather, they will be differently emphasized in the field, given that each stakeholder or community has its own values. In the process of their integration, the above-mentioned four stakeholders should allow different values to be filtered into the transition based on a long-term perspective.

The present work contributes to the existing literature by extending the theories of disaster management into the field of international tourism, and vice versa, while systematically connecting the two issues and addressing their transition. Research efforts on disaster management have raised numerous contentious issues without paying much attention to tourism. Similarly, the research on international tourism has pursued specific challenges and alternatives without much regard for disaster management. In this light, this study theoretically provides new research perspective(s) for both disaster management and international tourism.

Research not only on disaster management but also on international tourism has often focused on unlikely solutions or problem-solving trends toward improving productivity by analyzing barriers, difficulties, or failed cases. This has been neither easy nor especially productive for either of these two distinct research fields. The present work provides a rare opportunity to resolve various problems in both fields while elaborating on the right research questions regarding the transition, text interpretation, and modeling, among others.

Considering the importance of preparation in the field of disaster management, the preparedness phase (among the four phases of the disaster management cycle: disaster prevention/mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery) has in many cases been greatly supported in relation to international tourism (Get Ready Queensland and Logan City Council 2019 ). The phase of preparedness may be flexibly implemented while identifying potential risks and management priorities around tour sites, protecting the tourism industry through plans and trainings, and other related tasks.

Nonetheless, this does not mean that the other phases of the disaster management cycle may be disregarded. The transition to active disaster management must be put into effect before, during, and after the occurrence of a disaster. Disaster mitigation might include such elements as weather forecasts, information regarding the spread of a pandemic, safety inspections, legal regulations, and the allocation of spaces such as national parks in the vicinity of volcanoes or other natural hazards; disaster preparedness might include such things as disaster training for tour guides and multilingual disaster information pamphlets for tourists; disaster response might include such things as rescue, evacuation, and medical treatment (if needed) for tour guides and tourists in the face of disaster; and post-disaster recovery efforts might include such things as temporary food, shelter, and health care for disaster survivors, assistance to tourists in contacting family and friends in their home countries, replacement of tourists’ essential items such as passports, toiletries, and clothing that may have been lost in the disaster, and help for tourists in arranging their return home.

The transition to active disaster management indicates that the international tourism field must have a higher level of resilience against disasters (Sydnor-Bousso et al. 2011 ). Disaster resilience means that the above four stakeholders have the capacity to efficiently absorb or recover from the impacts of disasters without compromising any future development in the long term. In other words, the field should be able to continue its business, thanks to the alternatives provided by active disaster management.

Further, the transition has to address the issue of disaster resistance (Building Science Education Solution Center 2021 ). Disaster resilience is mainly confined to the disaster recovery phase, whereas disaster resistance applies to the four phases of the disaster management cycle. In fact, disaster resistance means that the four stakeholders have the ability to resist the onset of a disaster. While actively addressing the transition, the field should be able to continue to resist the impacts of a disaster before, during, and after its occurrence, as in the case of disaster-resistant buildings around historical sites.

It will be necessary to educate appropriate disaster management around international tourism at the local level (UNEP 2007 ). Local communities in this context may be said to include government authorities, the tourism industry, mass media, local residents, and international tourists, among others. These local communities need to incorporate appropriate education on local disaster risk reduction into their mainstream disaster management education while also supporting international tourism. In particular, they must educate people on how to flexibly respond to local disasters in relation to international tourism.

International tourism also needs to embrace the issue of sustainability in the transition to active disaster management (Ural 2015 ). Sustainability usually entails the development or enhancement of disaster management based on a long-term perspective. Therefore, the field must continue to manage various disasters not only by constantly monitoring the risks of related disasters but also by taking preventive measures against catastrophes. Similarly, it needs to think globally (e.g., transnational disaster management) but act locally (e.g., reflection of indigenous culture).

During the transition, the appropriate stakeholders could market the effectiveness of active disaster management to the parties concerned in international tourism (Aliperti et al. 2018 ). Marketing may involve encouraging customers to purchase goods and services as well as to revise and institute new business practices. The stakeholders could systematically provide the benefits of active disaster management for those who travel internationally or for anyone directly or indirectly related to international tourism. By instituting active disaster management, those involved in the field of international tourism could contribute to the long-term health of the field by achieving both the economic and psychological benefits that will accrue from a safe and reliable system of international tourism.

7 Conclusion

The impacts of COVID-19 have noticeably worsened the situation of international tourism. The objective of this research has been to enhance the role of disaster management in the international tourism field toward the ultimate goal of decreasing the physical and psychological impacts of disasters on international tourism. In comparing passive with active disaster management considering four stakeholders, namely, tourists, tourism industry, regional governments, and international organizations, multiple barriers and alternatives have been identified. The results indicate that the research objective has been satisfactorily achieved.

The key finding of this study is that the four disaster management stakeholders must shift from passive to active disaster management in the near future. Toward this end, each stakeholder needs to carry out its assigned tasks. For example, whereas tourists should mainly focus on disaster awareness, the tourism industry needs to ensure that all-hazards disaster-related information is monitored and is provided to tour guides and tourists in a timely manner. Whereas regional governments are to pursue diversity such as individual differences and related respects within administrative zones, international organizations should facilitate the practical inclusion of disaster management and visionary leadership into international tourism.

Compared with previous research, the present work has the strength of using a systematic approach to study the connection between disaster management and international tourism. At the same time, not only the supply but also the demand side is considered. From a macro-perspective, this study attempts to provide a framework for the role of disaster management in the international tourism field.

Future research may further explore the relationship between disaster management and international tourism based on the present results. Case studies, as well as comparative or joint studies, may also be carried out. In addition, researchers may further investigate each challenge and alternative provided in this work to improve disaster management in the international tourism field.

Data Availability

Data sharing was not applicable to this research because no data sets were generated or analyzed during the study.

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Ask Skift: How Do Natural Disasters Impact Tourism?

Rashaad Jorden , Skift

September 25th, 2023 at 1:00 AM EDT

Natural disasters have decimated several destinations in recent months, so how have events like earthquakes and wildfires impacted tourism industries? Ask Skift provides answers.

Rashaad Jorden

Several destinations heavily dependent on tourism have been devastated recently by natural disasters, including Maui and Morocco .

How do natural disasters impact tourism? We posed the question to  Ask Skift , our artificial intelligence chatbot. It provided answers based on information from our past news coverage and research, and we also conducted further reporting.

Ask Skift said:

Natural disasters significantly impact tourism. Tour operators and conference events often cancel or suspend operations in the aftermath of a disaster, as was the case following an earthquake in Morocco in September 2023 . Such cancellations can lead to significant decreases in tourism for the affected areas. Additionally, extreme weather patterns are causing tourism businesses to adapt to a new landscape , understanding and responding to the day-to-day impacts of these events.

According to a report by the European Travel Commission, around 7.6% of travelers now consider extreme weather events a major concern for trips , particularly during the peak season from June to November. This has led to changes in travel decisions, with some opting for cooler destinations to avoid heatwaves.

Furthermore, there’s a sense of a new normal emerging in the age of climate change, where such events are becoming more common and impacting tourism promotion. For example, Australia had to pull a tourism campaign due to the contrasting reality of wildfires in the region .

Overall, the impact of natural disasters on tourism is multifaceted, affecting travel plans, operations of travel businesses, and even tourism promotion strategies.

What else you need to know:

Maui, hit by massive wildfires on the western part of the island last month, might see a drop in visitors for the foreseeable future , according to analysts at T.D. Cowen. While they wrote that Hawaii overall would remain a dream vacation destination, they predicted Maui’s rebound would “take years,” citing the two-year recovery for air travel demand to Puerto Rico after Hurricane Irma in 2017.

John Reyes, the senior vice president of the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau, said the island is losing $11 million a day because of the downturn in visitors, with many travelers opting not to visit the island out of sensitivity to local residents . So the Hawaii Tourism Authority is currently running a tourism campaign Mālama Maui, which means “to protect, nurture and care for,” that runs through October 31.

The state will reopen West Maui , which bore the brunt of the wildfires, to tourists staring on October 8. However, the heavily damaged Lahaina will remain closed to the public.

Meanwhile, Rachid Aourraz, a Morocco-based nonresident senior scholar for Washington, D.C.-based think tank Middle East Institute, told the Washington Post that the tourism industry in Marrakech, near the epicenter of the earthquake, would suffer for months . Aourraz added that relying on tourism solely to revive the local economy would be illogical.

However, Moroccan hotel managers have said business is gradually returning . And they expect a big boost in business from next month’s International Monetary Fund and World Bank Group annual meeting in Marrakech. Jean-François Brun, general manager of the Fairmont Royal Palm Marrakech, said he expects his hotel to be fully booked for the event.

Although tourism workers living near the epicenter of the recent Moroccan earthquake have expressed concerns about the future of their livelihoods , other destinations such as New Orleans and the Hawaiian island of Kauai have made major recoveries from natural disasters. New Orleans attracted 10.5 million visitors in 2016, breaking a record established prior to Hurricane Katrina .

Kauai, which saw roughly 1.2 million tourists in both 1990 and 1991, made a similar comeback after being battered by Hurricane Iniki in 1992. The island rebounded to attract a million visitors in 1998, eventually surpassing its pre-disaster arrival number in 2006, according to the Hawaii Tourism Authority.

And natural disasters can spark changes in tourism marketing strategies. Puerto Rico invested heavily in tourism marketing after Hurricane Maria struck the island in 2017 . Its efforts, which have included bringing the musical Hamilton to island, helped result in Puerto Rico attracting 5.2 million visitors in 2019. Puerto Rico went on to surpass its pre-pandemic arrival numbers in 2022 .

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Tags: ask skift , earthquake , hawaii , hurricanes , maui , morocco , natural disasters , puerto rico

Photo credit: Tourism to Maui has decreased significantly after the islands was hit by wildfires. State Farm / Flickr

Disaster Tourism: 10 Ravaged Sites That You Should See Up Close

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Why are people so fascinated by tragedy? For the same reasons we have trouble looking away from a terrible car accident, tourists are attracted to the sites of disaster. Natural disasters, manmade disasters, wherever there is a large amount of unexpected loss, you are sure to find people gawking at the aftermath. Visiting these sites gives us a chance to reflect on the horrors they cause so that we may learn from past mistakes and prevent future tragedies from happening.

Many of these tragic landmarks are critical to understanding human history. In honor of the fallen, here are the 10 most important sites of disaster tourism.

RELATED: The 10 Biggest Music Festival Disasters, Ranked

10 10. Prince William Sound, Alaska

In 1989, the infamous Exxon Valdez Spill occurred in Prince William Sound, Alaska, releasing 11 million tons of crude oil into the ocean. 30 years later, the environmental nightmare continues, and large amounts of oil still pollute the water.

The economy for nearby towns was shot down by the spill, as fishing and recreation decreased drastically. Visiting this area and seeing the oil's effects on the people and the nature is a powerful and emotional trip for any passionate environmentalist.

9 9. The Hindenburg Crash Site, New Jersey

"Oh, the humanity!" These were the words that Radio Reporter Herb Morrison blurted out when he witnessed the infamous Hindenburg Crash in 1937. The luxury airship, transporting only the wealthiest elite, burst into flames in the New Jersey sky. This was the first major accident of this size recorded on video.

The Navy Lakehurst Historical Society offers tours of the crash site, where visitors can learn more about the crash, how it happened, and where exactly the accident went down. This is a fascinating stop for anyone interested in aviation history.

8 8. Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, Washington

In 1980, Mount St. Helen erupted, wiping out over 200 homes and killing 57 people. This was the most devastating instance of volcanic activity in American history. Over 150 square miles of forest was destroyed.

As of 1980, this land is a dedicated memorial to hiking, outdoor activity, and most importantly, remembering an honoring those lives lost in the volcanic catastrophe. The forests, which were once completely wiped out, have since started to grow back.

7 7. Nevada National Security Site, Nevada

Located about 70 miles from Las Vegas, the Nevada National Security Site is truly a wasteland in every way. While not a disaster site in the traditional sense, as in no human tragedy happened here, there was an enormous amount of physical destruction to this land and everything in it. This was the site for over 900 nuclear tests between the 1950s up until the 1990s, during a time where nuclear war seemed inevitable.

RELATED: 10 Best Free Things To Do In Las Vegas

The territory is now a tourist spot for people interested in the history of nuclear warfare. Many craters are leftover from explosions, and visitors can tour some of the facilities used in nuclear testing.

6 6. Oklahoma City National Memorial

In 1995, Oklahoma saw one of the worst terrorist attacks in American history. A car bomb set off a massive explosion, destroying the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building and leaving 168 people dead with hundreds more injured.

Today, the Oklahoma City National Memorial honors all that fell in that devastating blow. There are stone chairs for each person who was lost in the attack with their names on them; this site is especially beautiful and peaceful at night. There is also a museum, which teaches the history of the attack, educating visitors on exactly what the city went through on that fateful day.

5 5. Hurricane Katrina, New Orleans

It's been nearly 14 years since New Orleans was hit with one of the worst storms in American history. And yet even today, many parts of the city are still being rebuilt. Over 800,000 housing units were damaged or destroyed in the storm, leaving countless people homeless and costing the U.S. an estimated $160 billion. And we're still not done!

New Orleans runs tours built around Hurricane Katrina's damage, with some of the proceeds going towards relief funds. Seeing even a portion of the damage this storm caused, with its effects lingering over a decade later, is humbling. If you want to support the rebuilding of New Orleans while seeing what its people went through, check out one if its many hurricane tours .

4 4. Ground Zero, New York

9/11 was the most shocking tragedy in recent American history. On that fateful day that the twin towers fell, the course of history was forever changed for the U.S. After losing nearly 3,000 American lives on home soil, we lost our sense of invulnerability, leaving us plagued with political insecurity, war, and fear.

RELATED: 10 Incredible Airbnbs in New York City to Add to Your List of Accommodations

In honor of the fallen, and in honor of what the rest of America felt following 9/11, New York City has a memorial at Ground Zero. Where the towers once stood are now fountains with the names of victims etched into them. There's also an entire museum for the incident. Visiting this site can be very emotional, but anyone looking to honor the victims of these horrific attacks may find peace in visiting Ground Zero.

3 3. Hiroshima Peace Memorial, Japan

On August 6, 1945 Japan was forever scarred by the world's first atomic bomb blowing up a huge portion of Hiroshima, killing estimations of over 100,000 people. The city was afterwards plagued with issues with radiation, thousands of displaced families and nearly an entire city that needed rebuilding.

While most of the city is rebuilt today and the radiation has died down, there are still remnants of the bomb's damage on the city, both physically and emotionally. The Genbaku Dome , also known as the "A-Bomb Dome" is Hiroshima's most powerful symbol of this damage; of all the buildings that were left standing after the explosion, this building was the closest to ground zero. The building is hollow, broken, and barely standing, much like the entire city was directly following the bomb, and is a living example of the horrors of nuclear war.

2 2. Chernobyl, Ukraine

In April of 1986, a nuclear power plant in Chernobyl exploded, causing the city to be overwhelmed with harmful radiation. The town's population of approximately 14,000 prior to the explosion has since left, and the United Nations estimates that about 4,000 people died of radiation-related causes.

This catastrophic nuclear explosion has left Chernobyl a ghost town, which is home to barely 500 people living on the outskirts. Most of the city is completely abandoned; buildings are left vacant and overgrown, with wild animals roaming the streets.

Take the city's eerie feeling of doom, paired with a mysterious and tragic backstory, and you got yourself a great tourist destination! Each year, thousands of horror-enthusiasts flock to this skeleton of a town to witness what a nuclear post-apocalyptic future looks like in real life.

1 1. Pompeii, Italy

Pompeii is one of the world's most unique disaster sites. This ancient port city, once part of the Roman Empire, fell victim to one of history's most notorious volcanic eruptions, killing an estimated 2,000 people and burying the city in millions of tons of ash. What makes this site so unique is how well the entire city was preserved under the ash. Many of the bodies had rock hardened around them, and archaeologists were able to make molds of people's exact body shapes nearly 2,000 years after the disaster. Seeing the shape of a man cowering in fear, or a woman holding her baby, still preserved after so many years, is both disturbing and an incredible feat of archaeology.

The city itself is also extremely well preserved. Streets are still intact, and you can still make out what each building's purpose was. Bathhouses, courtyards, markets, brothels -they are all still there. Pompeii takes the cake as the #1 site for disaster tourism not because it had the most deaths, but because the site is a perfect time capsule for the exact moment the city was flooded with soot and ash all the way back in 79 AD.

RELATED: 20 Super Unusual Places In Italy The Locals Don't Want Tourists To Flock To

• Destinations

These 7 Places Destroyed By Man-Made Disasters Are Still Not Safe For Visitors

• Avoid disrespectful visits to disaster sites; dark tourism must be approached with caution and sensitivity.
• In the towns of Wittenoom (Australia) and Libby (U.S.), be cautious of asbestos contamination when visiting these human-made disaster zones.
• While Centralia (U.S.) and Bhopal (India) are fascinating, be mindful of safety and potential health risks if visiting.

There's something utterly fascinating about dark tourism; the desire to go to places where atrocities happened and experience them for yourself. While there are plenty of spots you can visit, as long as you do it respectfully , there are also plenty of no-go zones where it's not advisable to visit, even if you can.

These seven spots were destroyed by human-made disasters, and you still shouldn't visit them.

Beyond Chernobyl: 7 Other Disaster Sites That Are Open For Tours In 2024

Chernobyl isn't the only disaster site open to visitors; these other sites of historical tragedies have also become accessible to the public.

Wittenoom, Australia

Blue asbestos destroyed this town.

While there are many beautiful small towns in Australia , there are many places where you really shouldn't tread, including Wittenoom, which was destroyed by a mining disaster that rendered the surrounding air totally toxic . The culprit, blue asbestos, which led to major health problems for the town's residents.

Fukushima, Japan

The site of one of the biggest industrial accidents of this millennium.

Fukushima was the victim of two disasters; a huge earthquake and a tsunami that targeted the Fukushima Daiichi plant and caused massive contamination in the surrounding area. This massive nuclear disaster captured the imaginations of many seekers of dark tourism, and tourism has sprung up at the power plant .

Should you visit? It all depends on how long you'll spend there and what kind of gambles you're willing to take.

If you do travel to a spot where there's been a tragedy; human-made or otherwise, it's imperative to be sensitive and avoid being disrespectful. Usually, these destinations are spots of massive loss of life, so approach this kind of tourism with caution.

Libby, Montana

An asbestos disaster in big sky country.

For decades, the vermiculite mine in Libby, Montana was secreting dangerous asbestos that led to widespread cancers . It's a questionable place to visit, even today. Asbestos is found everywhere, even in local flora and fauna, and the long-term effects of living in that type of environment can't be understated.

8 Most Dangerous Volcanoes To Visit In The World

Here, we'll look at eight of the most dangerous volcanoes in the world, how much of an imposing specter they are, and how a visitor can get to them.

Pripyat, Ukraine

The site of the most famous nuclear accident in history.

Pripyat, the town that existed right outside the Chernobyl plant, is easily one of the most famous human-made disaster sites . When Chernobyl melted down in the mid-1980s, the nearby working town of Pripyat was evacuated, leaving a ghost town in its wake. Pripyat is undeniably fascinating, if for nothing else but its Cold War-era architecture. ​​​

Centralia, Pennsylvania

Scarred by an underground fire and abandoned.

Centralia's fire has been burning for half a century , rendering the once-vibrant coal mining town into an abandoned and creepy place. One of the most famous spots, the Graffiti Highway, is no longer open . While people can technically visit Centralia, you shouldn't, as there's a lot of unstable soil and possibly dangerous gases.

​​ ​​​​​​

Bhopal, India

A pesticide plant leak that decimated a town.

In the mid-1980s, Bhopal experienced a horrifying industrial disaster when pesticides leaked from a nearby plant and created a toxic environment that killed up to 30,000 people (by some estimates) . Today, you can visit Bhopal, but visiting the plant is still not advisable , although there are tours of the site and a memorial to the victims.

​​​​​​

7 U.S. Cities Most Vulnerable To Earthquakes In The Next 100 Years

With the West Coast, Alaska, and Hawaii at maximum risk, some cities are more susceptible to damage because of population density and infrastructure.

Picher, Oklahoma

A town destroyed by lead poisoning.

Aside from a few stalwart residents , the town of Picher is a ghostly village, ravaged by lead poisoning. What's most eerie about this town is that you can still see remnants of the original town all around, like the gorilla statue that celebrates the local football team.

20 Worst Vacation Destinations in The World: Avoid These Travel Nightmares

Vacations are meant to be enjoyable experiences, offering relaxation, adventure, and new perspectives.

Yet some destinations fail to deliver on their promises, leaving travelers disappointed and frustrated.

This article explores 20 of the world’s worst vacation spots, highlighting locations that often fall short of expectations.

From overcrowded tourist traps to places plagued by safety concerns, these destinations serve as cautionary tales for potential visitors.

By examining these less-than-ideal vacation spots, travelers can make more informed decisions about their future trips and avoid common pitfalls.

1. Chernobyl, Ukraine

Chernobyl, Ukraine stands as a haunting reminder of the 1986 nuclear disaster. The site of the catastrophic reactor meltdown remains highly radioactive and unsafe for long-term human habitation.

Visitors can take guided tours of the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone, but strict safety protocols must be followed. Exposure to radiation limits tour durations to a few hours.

The abandoned city of Pripyat near the power plant offers a glimpse into a Soviet-era ghost town. Decaying buildings, empty streets, and rusting amusement park rides create an eerie atmosphere.

While some view Chernobyl as a unique destination for dark tourism, the potential health risks and somber history make it an unsuitable choice for a traditional vacation.

2. Pyongyang, North Korea

Pyongyang, the capital of North Korea, stands as one of the world’s least appealing vacation destinations. Strict government control severely limits tourist activities and movements.

Visitors face constant surveillance and must adhere to rigid schedules dictated by state-approved tour guides. Photography is heavily restricted, with penalties for unauthorized snapshots.

The city’s architecture showcases imposing socialist-style buildings and grand monuments. However, access to many areas remains off-limits to foreigners.

Tourists are required to bow and place flowers at statues of the country’s leaders. This mandatory show of respect can be uncomfortable for many visitors.

Internet access is virtually non-existent, and communication with the outside world is extremely limited. These restrictions contribute to an isolating experience for travelers.

3. Mogadishu, Somalia

Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia, faces significant challenges as a tourist destination. The city has been plagued by decades of civil war and instability, making it unsafe for visitors.

Security concerns remain high, with frequent terrorist attacks and violent crime. The U.S. State Department advises against all travel to Somalia, including Mogadishu, due to kidnapping, bombing, and murder risks.

Infrastructure in Mogadishu is severely underdeveloped. Basic services like electricity and clean water are unreliable. Healthcare facilities are limited and often lack essential supplies.

The city’s once-beautiful beaches are now unsafe due to pollution and the presence of armed groups. Historical sites and cultural attractions have been damaged or destroyed during years of conflict.

Travelers face extreme difficulty obtaining visas and finding safe accommodation in Mogadishu. The lack of a functioning tourism industry further complicates visits to this troubled city.

4. Caracas, Venezuela

Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, faces significant challenges as a tourist destination. The city grapples with high crime rates, making safety a primary concern for visitors.

Economic instability has led to shortages of basic necessities, impacting the quality of life for residents and tourists alike. The local infrastructure has deteriorated, affecting transportation and public services.

Political unrest and frequent protests contribute to an unpredictable atmosphere in Caracas. These factors have led to a decline in tourism, with many international governments advising against travel to the area.

The once-vibrant cultural scene has been affected by the ongoing situation. Many historic sites and attractions struggle with maintenance issues due to limited resources.

5. Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea

Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, faces significant challenges as a tourist destination. The city grapples with high crime rates, making it unsafe for visitors to explore freely.

Gang activity and violent crimes are prevalent, especially in certain areas. Tourists are advised to exercise extreme caution and avoid walking alone, particularly at night.

The city’s infrastructure is underdeveloped, with limited public transportation options and poor road conditions. This can make getting around difficult and potentially dangerous for travelers.

Accommodation options in Port Moresby are limited and often expensive. Many hotels require high security measures, which can feel restrictive to visitors.

Despite its natural beauty and cultural richness, Port Moresby’s security issues and lack of tourist-friendly amenities make it a challenging destination for most travelers.

6. Timbuktu, Mali

Timbuktu, once a legendary city of wealth and knowledge, now faces significant challenges as a vacation destination. The remote location in northern Mali makes it difficult and expensive to reach.

Safety concerns plague the region due to political instability and the threat of terrorism. Many countries advise against travel to Timbuktu and surrounding areas.

The harsh desert climate can be overwhelming for visitors, with extreme heat and sandstorms common. Limited infrastructure and basic accommodations may not meet the expectations of many tourists.

While Timbuktu boasts UNESCO World Heritage sites, many historic buildings have deteriorated due to lack of preservation. The city’s famous manuscripts, once a major draw, have been largely relocated for safekeeping.

Tourism has declined sharply in recent years, resulting in fewer services for visitors. The combination of security risks, difficult access, and limited attractions makes Timbuktu a challenging destination for most travelers.

7. Acapulco, Mexico

Once a glamorous resort town, Acapulco has fallen from grace. The city now grapples with high crime rates and drug-related violence, making it a risky destination for tourists.

Beach-goers face polluted waters and overcrowded shores. The iconic cliff divers still perform, but the surrounding area has become run-down and potentially dangerous.

Acapulco’s infrastructure struggles to keep up with its population. Visitors often encounter traffic congestion, inadequate public transportation, and poorly maintained roads.

The city’s nightlife scene, while still active, has been tainted by safety concerns. Many travelers now opt for safer Mexican destinations, leaving Acapulco’s tourism industry in decline.

8. Dhaka, Bangladesh

Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, presents significant challenges for travelers. The city grapples with severe air pollution, ranking among the worst globally for air quality.

Traffic congestion is a major issue in Dhaka. Gridlock is common, making it difficult to navigate the city efficiently. Public transportation options are limited and often overcrowded.

Poverty is widespread in Dhaka, with many residents living in slums. This can be distressing for visitors unaccustomed to such conditions. The city also faces infrastructure problems, including frequent power outages and inadequate waste management.

Dhaka experiences extreme heat and humidity, particularly during the summer months. This can be uncomfortable for tourists not acclimated to such weather. The monsoon season brings heavy rainfall, leading to flooding in parts of the city.

9. Karachi, Pakistan

Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city, faces significant challenges as a tourist destination. The metropolis grapples with persistent security concerns, limiting visitors’ ability to explore freely.

Frequent power outages disrupt daily life and tourist activities. The city’s infrastructure struggles to keep pace with its rapidly growing population, resulting in congested roads and overcrowded public spaces.

Air pollution poses health risks for travelers, especially during summer months. Inadequate waste management systems contribute to unsanitary conditions in many areas.

Limited tourist attractions and amenities further diminish Karachi’s appeal. While the city offers glimpses of rich culture and history, these are often overshadowed by its urban challenges.

Extreme heat during summer months can make outdoor exploration uncomfortable for visitors. The lack of reliable public transportation options complicates navigation for tourists unfamiliar with the city.

10. Kingston, Jamaica

Kingston, Jamaica’s capital city, presents challenges for travelers seeking a relaxing Caribbean getaway. High crime rates in certain areas make it essential for visitors to exercise caution and stay vigilant.

The city’s infrastructure struggles to keep pace with its growing population. This leads to traffic congestion and inadequate public transportation options, which can frustrate tourists trying to explore.

Kingston’s beaches often disappoint visitors expecting pristine Caribbean shores. Many are polluted or lack proper maintenance, diminishing their appeal for sun-seekers and water enthusiasts.

The city’s intense heat and humidity can be overwhelming for some travelers, especially during summer months. This climate can make outdoor activities uncomfortable and potentially dangerous without proper precautions.

While Kingston offers cultural experiences, many tourists find the city lacks the idyllic charm associated with other Caribbean destinations. Its urban grit and industrial areas contrast sharply with expectations of a tropical paradise.

11. Goma, Democratic Republic of Congo

Goma, situated near the border of Rwanda, faces significant challenges as a vacation destination. The city’s proximity to active volcanoes poses constant risks to visitors and residents alike.

In 2002, Mount Nyiragongo erupted, causing widespread destruction and displacing thousands. The threat of future volcanic activity remains ever-present, making Goma an unpredictable location for tourists.

The region’s political instability and ongoing conflicts further contribute to safety concerns. Armed groups operate in the surrounding areas, leading to occasional outbreaks of violence.

Infrastructure in Goma is limited, with unreliable electricity and water supplies. Healthcare facilities are often inadequate, leaving travelers vulnerable in case of emergencies.

While Goma offers unique experiences like gorilla trekking, the risks associated with visiting outweigh the potential rewards for most travelers. Safety concerns and limited amenities make it a challenging destination for tourism.

12. Damascus, Syria

Damascus, the capital of Syria, faces significant challenges as a travel destination due to ongoing conflict and instability. The city has been severely affected by the Syrian Civil War, which began in 2011.

Safety concerns are paramount for potential visitors. Many countries have issued travel advisories against visiting Damascus and Syria as a whole. The risk of violence, terrorism, and kidnapping remains high.

Infrastructure in Damascus has been damaged by years of conflict. Essential services like electricity and water can be unreliable. Many historical sites and cultural attractions have suffered destruction or neglect during the war.

The local economy has been devastated, leading to shortages of basic goods and services. This can make it difficult for travelers to find suitable accommodations or reliable transportation.

While Damascus has a rich history spanning thousands of years, current conditions make it an unsafe and impractical destination for tourists.

13. San Pedro Sula, Honduras

San Pedro Sula, the second-largest city in Honduras, has earned a notorious reputation as one of the world’s most dangerous urban areas. The city consistently ranks among the top cities with the highest homicide rates globally.

Gang violence and drug trafficking plague San Pedro Sula, creating an atmosphere of fear and insecurity for both residents and visitors. The prevalence of crime has led to a breakdown in social structures and limited economic opportunities.

The city’s infrastructure struggles to keep up with its growing population, resulting in inadequate public services and poor living conditions in many areas. Poverty and unemployment rates remain high, contributing to the ongoing cycle of violence.

Tourists are advised to exercise extreme caution when visiting San Pedro Sula. The U.S. State Department has issued travel warnings for the city due to its high crime rates and limited law enforcement capabilities.

14. N’Djamena, Chad

N’Djamena, the capital of Chad, presents significant challenges for tourists. The city’s infrastructure is underdeveloped, with limited access to reliable electricity and clean water.

Safety concerns are paramount in N’Djamena. Political instability and the risk of terrorism make it a potentially dangerous destination for visitors.

The extreme heat in N’Djamena can be overwhelming, with temperatures often soaring above 40°C (104°F). This harsh climate makes outdoor activities and sightseeing difficult.

Accommodation options in the city are limited and often fail to meet international standards. Visitors may find it challenging to secure comfortable lodging.

N’Djamena lacks tourist attractions and entertainment venues. The city offers few cultural or historical sites of interest to travelers.

15. Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo, presents significant challenges for tourists. The city struggles with inadequate infrastructure, making travel within its boundaries difficult and often unsafe.

Political instability and high crime rates contribute to an unpredictable environment for visitors. Tourists may encounter security risks, including theft and violent crime.

The city’s healthcare facilities are limited, posing potential health concerns for travelers. Sanitation issues and the risk of diseases like malaria further complicate visits to Kinshasa.

Accommodation options in Kinshasa are often subpar, with many hotels lacking basic amenities and proper maintenance. The city’s limited tourist attractions fail to compensate for these drawbacks.

Kinshasa’s extreme poverty is evident throughout the urban landscape, creating an uncomfortable atmosphere for many visitors. The stark contrast between wealth and poverty can be unsettling for tourists.

16. Tripoli, Libya

Tripoli, Libya’s capital city, faces significant challenges as a tourist destination. Years of political instability and security concerns have severely impacted the city’s infrastructure and tourism industry.

Visitors to Tripoli may encounter limited accommodation options and unreliable public transportation. The city’s once-vibrant historical sites and cultural attractions have suffered from neglect and damage during periods of conflict.

Travel advisories from many countries strongly discourage visits to Tripoli due to ongoing safety risks. The unpredictable security situation can lead to sudden closures of airports and borders, potentially leaving travelers stranded.

While Tripoli holds potential for tourism with its Mediterranean coastline and rich history, current conditions make it a difficult and potentially dangerous destination for most travelers.

17. Sana’a, Yemen

Sana’a, the capital of Yemen, faces significant challenges as a tourist destination. The city is currently affected by ongoing conflict and political instability, making it unsafe for visitors.

Travel advisories strongly discourage non-essential trips to Yemen due to the high risk of terrorism, civil unrest, and kidnapping. The security situation in Sana’a remains volatile and unpredictable.

Limited access to basic services like healthcare, clean water, and electricity further complicates travel to the city. The infrastructure has been damaged by years of conflict, impacting transportation and accommodation options.

While Sana’a boasts a rich cultural heritage and historic architecture, these attractions are largely inaccessible to tourists due to safety concerns. The current circumstances have severely limited the city’s ability to welcome and accommodate visitors.

18. Grozny, Chechnya

Grozny, the capital of Chechnya, has a troubled history marked by conflict and destruction. The city suffered extensive damage during two wars with Russia in the 1990s and early 2000s.

While reconstruction efforts have taken place, Grozny still faces significant challenges. Security concerns persist, with occasional reports of violence and unrest in the region.

Infrastructure remains underdeveloped, and many buildings show signs of past conflict. Tourist amenities are limited, and visitors may encounter difficulties with accommodations and transportation.

The city’s cultural attractions are few, as many historical sites were destroyed during the wars. Language barriers can also pose challenges for foreign travelers, as English is not widely spoken.

Travel advisories from many countries discourage visits to Grozny due to safety concerns. Visitors may experience heightened security measures and potential restrictions on movement.

19. Port-au-Prince, Haiti

Port-au-Prince, the capital of Haiti, faces significant challenges as a vacation destination. The city struggles with widespread poverty, inadequate infrastructure, and political instability.

Safety concerns are paramount for visitors. Crime rates remain high, with reports of robberies and violent incidents affecting both locals and tourists.

The city’s infrastructure has been severely damaged by natural disasters, including the devastating 2010 earthquake. Many buildings and roads are still in disrepair, making navigation difficult.

Poor sanitation and limited access to clean water pose health risks for travelers. Medical facilities often lack resources, complicating potential emergencies.

While Haiti has a rich cultural heritage, Port-au-Prince’s attractions are limited. Many historical sites were destroyed in the earthquake, and rebuilding efforts have been slow.

20. Kabul, Afghanistan

Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, faces significant challenges as a tourist destination. The city grapples with ongoing security concerns that make it unsafe for most visitors.

Travel advisories from numerous countries strongly discourage trips to Kabul due to the high risk of terrorism, kidnapping, and armed conflict. The unpredictable security situation limits tourists’ ability to explore the city freely.

Infrastructure in Kabul remains underdeveloped, with frequent power outages and limited access to clean water. The city’s healthcare facilities are often inadequate for treating serious illnesses or injuries.

While Kabul has a rich history and cultural heritage, many historical sites have been damaged or destroyed during years of conflict. This limits the city’s appeal to those interested in exploring Afghanistan’s past.

Climate and Weather Concerns

Certain destinations pose significant risks due to their climate and weather patterns. These locations can experience extreme conditions that make travel uncomfortable or even dangerous.

Extreme Temperatures

Death Valley, California consistently ranks as one of the hottest places on Earth. Summer temperatures often soar above 120°F (49°C), creating hazardous conditions for visitors. Dehydration and heat stroke are serious risks.

The city of Yakutsk in Russia faces the opposite extreme. Winter temperatures can plummet to -60°F (-51°C), making it one of the coldest inhabited places globally. Frostbite can occur within minutes of exposure.

Dubai, UAE experiences scorching summers with temperatures reaching 113°F (45°C). The intense heat limits outdoor activities and can be unbearable for many tourists.

Seasonal Hurricanes and Typhoons

The Caribbean islands face an annual hurricane season from June to November. Popular destinations like the Bahamas and Jamaica are vulnerable to these powerful storms.

Hurricane Dorian devastated parts of the Bahamas in 2019, causing widespread destruction and loss of life.

The Philippines experiences an average of 20 typhoons per year. These storms can cause severe flooding, landslides, and infrastructure damage. Manila, the capital city, is particularly susceptible to typhoon-related flooding.

Hong Kong also lies in a typhoon-prone region. The city’s dense urban landscape amplifies the potential for wind damage and flooding during these events.

Monsoon Seasons

India’s monsoon season, typically from June to September, brings heavy rainfall and potential flooding to many regions. Popular tourist destinations like Mumbai can experience severe disruptions.

Mumbai’s 2005 monsoon floods resulted in over 1,000 deaths and paralyzed the city for days.

Thailand’s monsoon season affects different parts of the country at various times. The southwestern monsoon hits the Andaman coast from April to October, while the Gulf coast experiences heavy rains from September to December.

These intense rainfall periods can lead to flash floods, mudslides, and transportation difficulties, significantly impacting travel plans and safety.

Health and Safety Issues

Some vacation destinations pose serious risks to travelers’ wellbeing. These hazards can range from violent crime to infectious diseases and contaminated food or water sources.

High Crime Rates

Certain tourist hotspots have earned reputations as crime capitals. Cities like Caracas, Venezuela and San Pedro Sula, Honduras consistently rank among the world’s most dangerous. Visitors face threats of robbery, assault, and kidnapping.

Petty theft and scams also plague many popular destinations. Pickpockets target crowded areas in cities like Barcelona and Rome. Tourists should remain vigilant and take precautions to protect valuables.

Some beach towns have seen spikes in violence due to drug cartel activity. Acapulco, Mexico has experienced increased homicides in recent years. Travelers are advised to research current safety conditions before booking trips to high-risk areas.

Disease Outbreaks

Tropical destinations can harbor infectious diseases uncommon in other regions. Mosquito-borne illnesses like malaria, dengue fever, and Zika virus pose threats in parts of Africa, Asia, and Latin America.

Travelers should consult health advisories and get recommended vaccinations before visiting affected areas. Places like India and Egypt have seen outbreaks of hepatitis A spread through contaminated food and water.

Poor sanitation in some developing countries increases risks of bacterial and parasitic infections. Diseases like cholera and typhoid fever remain concerns in parts of Africa and South Asia.

Unsafe Food and Water

Consuming contaminated food or water can quickly derail a vacation. Street food and uncooked produce pose risks in areas with poor food safety standards.

Travelers’ diarrhea affects 30-70% of visitors to high-risk destinations. Countries like Mexico, India, and Egypt are common culprits. Symptoms can last for days and cause severe dehydration.

Tap water is unsafe to drink in many parts of the world. Even brushing teeth with contaminated water can lead to illness. Visitors should stick to bottled water and avoid ice cubes in high-risk areas.

Food poisoning from undercooked meats or contaminated seafood can also ruin trips. Travelers should be cautious when dining out, especially in places with lax health regulations.

Liz Flynn has worked as a full-time writer since 2010 after leaving a career in education. She finds almost all topics she writes about interesting, but her favorite subjects are travel and food. Liz loves the process of researching information, learning new things, and putting into words what others who share her interests might like to read. Although she spends most of her time writing, she also enjoys spending time with her husband and four children, watching films, cooking, dining out, reading, motorsports, gaming, and walking along the beach next to her house with her dog.

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More From Forbes

Must-visit adventure travel destinations for fall.

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Hikers are rewarded with beautiful landscapes in Patagonia.

Traveling during the United States’ shoulder seasons, or when the crush of peak summer tourism has passed, rewards visitors with fewer sightseers, more affordable rates at hotels and attractions, improved availability, and better weather. For adventurers, who are looking to spend time in the outdoors , the fall season is an idyllic opportunity for enjoying many thrilling experiences, nearby or internationally.

Keep reading to learn about must-visit destinations for autumn, picture-perfect for hikers, campers, bikers, and kayakers.

The Greek Islands

The dramatic landscapes in Santorini are best experienced on foot.

With select dates available in early fall, September and October, active travelers who would love to explore the Greek islands of Santorini, Paros, and Naxos will love a week-long walking adventure with Exodus Adventure Travels . The Walking on the Greek Islands tour includes a professional local guide who will not only provide valuable context for the islands you’re visiting, but also, take care of all of the logistics along the way so that you can simply enjoy the outdoors and sunlight while exploring each of the islands.

Good to know: As mindful stewards, Exodus Adventure Travels cares about the environment and keeping a low carbon footprint. You can feel good knowing that local and often family-run restaurants and hotels are chosen with this in mind.

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Trump vs. harris 2024 polls: harris leads trump in latest post-dnc surveys, today’s nyt mini crossword clues and answers for wednesday, august 28th, chicago, illinois.

Make the most of the season and enjoy Chicago while the weather still cooperates.

Not only is the Windy City known for its architecture, deep dish pizza, baseball, and lively comedy scene, it’s also revered for its outdoor spaces where health-conscious folks can take advantage. Lake Michigan, the Chicago River, The 606 trail, and more than 600 parks in the Chicago Park District —including the famous Millennium Park —keep Chicagoans and visitors active no matter what the season. Plus, the multi-hued colors of the season are on brilliant display.

The metropolis also hosts a number of races in the fall season including the Hot Chocolate Run , which facilitates runners in 5, 10, or 15K challenges. Fall runners would do well to layer up for race day, utilizing breathable performance wear like the long-sleeve Norvan Crew Shirt from Arc’Teryx.

Good to know: Of course a big city like Chicago would have plenty of places to rest your head. For a Gold Coast stunner, complete with a fantastic restaurant—Laurel—that is near popular attractions like Art Institute of Chicago , Chicago Theatre , and Museum of Contemporary Art , book a stay at Talbott Hotel. You’ll love walking or running to nearby parks and around this neighborhood during your stay. Bonus: pets are welcome too!

Spending time in the outdoors is always a good idea, especially if you're in Ireland.

With fewer crowds yet all the splendor and beauty that the Emerald Isle is known for, Ireland is a wonderful destination to visit in the autumn. Picture purple heather, which can still be seen this time of year, providing a dramatic contrast to the reds, yellows, and golds dotting the countryside.

Whether you enjoy hiking, cycling, or self-driving, let the professionals at Wilderness Ireland assist you with your endeavors. From Killarney National Park to Connemara to Donegal, keep your eyes out for wildlife, wildflowers, and farm creatures that pepper the diverse landscapes.

Good to know: Popular fall trips with Wilderness Ireland include island hopping on Ireland’s West Coast , cycling on Connemara & The Burren , and hiking The Dingle Way. No matter which tour you choose, you’re in for an adventuresome treat.

Experiencing the Dubai Desert on a safari is a bucket list adventure.

An exciting destination to explore, Dubai has it all. See the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world; Dubai Marina; Jumeirah Beach; Dubai Frame; gold and spice souks; and Mirzam, a handsome chocolate factory. You’ll find that there’s plenty to do to keep you entertained.

Good to know: Worth the trip outside of the city center, Platinum Heritage Dubai is the ultimate eco-friendly desert safari. Ride in a vintage Land Rover through the wilderness as you look for wildlife. Marvel at the athleticism of falcons during a sunset show. Indulge in a four-course Emirati dinner at a Bedouin camp. Wrap up the evening with a short camel ride and then lounge on pillows and rugs as you listen to live music. It’s the adventure of a lifetime.

Patagonia, Argentina

The rugged peaks of Patagonia leave a lasting impression on all hikers and travelers.

The road to all-things beautiful and rugged leads to Patagonia, a mecca for hikers and outdoor enthusiasts. If you’ve never been to Argentina before, enlist the professional services of Flash Pack , experts in bonding solo travelers in their 30s and 40s together to explore the globe. For the Ultimate Argentina tour, you’ll travel with your group from Buenos Aires to Patagonia to Mendoza for a well-rounded experience that includes active adventures like biking, kayaking, hiking in the mountains, trekking on a glacier, and wine tasting. You’ll want to pack layers for the diverse weather and landscapes you’ll be experiencing throughout the country. This is the tour to usurp all others when it comes to variety and value.

Good to know: Fall is a fantastic time to go on this ten-day guided tour and there are many dates available throughout October, November, and December with Flash Pack.

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9 Best Places to Retire on the East Coast

Retirees can choose from four seasons or year-round summer on the Atlantic Coast.

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The East Coast of the U.S. offers a range of places to retire, from the north for those who enjoy the changing seasons to the mid-coastal states for milder weather and then south to Florida where the temperatures are warm year-round.

While each state has its own set of attractions, living near the ocean is a major allure for most who want to spend their golden years on the East Coast. Many retirees also enjoy the history of the towns and cities, some dating to the 1600s.

The cost of living varies with differences in home prices, utilities, and property, sales, and income taxes. Each state designs its own tax structure, including levies on income and inheritance — an important consideration for many retirees. Availability of health care, senior living facilities, activities, entertainment, and transportation also figure into the selection of a retirement destination.

With input from local experts and personal experience, here's a list of the best places to retire on the East Coast.

Port St. Lucie, Florida

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“Port St. Lucie is proud to be the sixth-largest city in Florida, with nearly 250,000 residents calling our vibrant community home,” Port St. Lucie’s mayor, Shannon Martin, tells Travel + Leisure . “Nestled on the beautiful Treasure Coast, our city serves as the economic heartbeat of the region ... We're consistently ranked among the best places to live in the nation, celebrated for our ethnic diversity, high homeownership rates, and as a top retirement destination,” she adds, also touting the city's low crime rate. “For more than a decade, we’ve ranked as the safest large city in Florida and one of the safest in the nation.”

Located on Florida’s Atlantic coast, about 110 miles north of Miami, Port St. Lucie is home to more than 20 miles of pristine beaches , most with free admission and parking plus convenient amenities. With a free nature and wildlife digital pass, wildlife spotting, hiking trails, and botanical gardens are accessible. Museums, art galleries, workshops, and performances are among the cultural opportunities in the area. A number of senior living developments are available, too, and the average home value, according to Zillow, is $401,544.

Florida has no state income tax , so pensions, IRA and 401(k) income, and Social Security are not taxed, an advantage over most other states. There’s no inheritance or estate tax, and both property and sales taxes are comparable to the national average.

St. Simons, Georgia

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The largest barrier island in Georgia’s Golden Isles , St. Simons is located on the coast, about 85 miles south of Savannah. “St. Simons Island is a wonderful place to raise a family and retire. We count ourselves blessed to live here,” says Jennifer Klonoski, community relations director at Magnolia Manor , a retirement community.

For Frances Woods, a retiree and Magnolia Manor resident, it's the “beautiful beaches, shops, activities, golf courses, wonderful restaurants, bike trails, great entertainment, and friendly people” that drew her to St. Simons Island. And according to Emilyn Clark, a seven-year Magnolia Manor resident, “Retirement on St. Simons Island is like living in a small neighborhood. All the residents are very friendly."

Niche ranks St. Simons as the second-best place to retire in Georgia. The retiree-friendly state does not tax Social Security. Other types of retirement income (interest, dividends, capital gains, royalties, pensions, and annuities) are taxable, but there’s a deduction of $65,000 per person for residents 65 and older (and a $35,000 per person deduction for those who are 62 to 64).

Georgia has no estate or inheritance taxes, and homeowners ages 62 and older may qualify for homestead exemptions on property taxes for their primary residence. Sales and property tax rates are considered moderate.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina

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“ Myrtle Beach is more than just a vacation destination; it’s a vibrant place to live with 14 unique communities offering a quality of life that’s hard to beat. With 60 miles of beautiful coastline, a mild climate year-round, and a thriving local economy, it’s no wonder families choose to call Myrtle Beach home,” says Karen Riordan, Visit Myrtle Beach president and CEO.

Here, visitors and locals are treated to world-class golf, plenty of dining and entertainment options, and welcoming Southern hospitality. “Visitors are often so enchanted by Myrtle Beach’s charm that they decide to make this beautiful place their permanent residence,” Riordan adds.

Considered a retirement-friendly state , South Carolina does not tax Social Security . Other types of retirement income are taxable, with a $10,000 deduction, at a marginal state rate of three percent. Property taxes are some of the lowest in the country. South Carolina does not levy estate or inheritance taxes .

Niche notes a median home value of $287,900 in Myrtle Beach. From private homes to high-rise condos, the city offers a range of places to live at a variety of price points.

Carolina Beach, North Carolina

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“The charm of this coastal community is among the many reasons retirees choose to relocate to Carolina Beach,” says Carolyn Glaser of Intracoastal Realty, who also calls out the destination's near-perfect weather, beautiful beaches, quaint marinas, oceanfront seafood restaurants, and 11-acre freshwater Carolina Beach Lake, which is ideal for fishing. “A nature lover's paradise, Carolina Beach State Park hosts the county's highest elevation hiking trail, as well as a marina and campsites.  Hundreds of resident and migrating bird species make Carolina Beach's Fort Fisher State Recreation Area their home, as do loggerhead turtles that nest on the island annually.”

In other words, you won't have to leave the island to find activities that cater to all interests. Visitors, especially the grandchildren, will find plenty to do, from the Carolina Beach Pier to the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher to the world-famous Britt's Donuts Shop.

“Low property and sales taxes, as well as a growing but affordable housing market, make Carolina Beach a desirable and prudent destination for retirees,” Glaser says. A relatively tax-friendly state for retirees, North Carolina exempts Social Security retirement benefits from income taxes. Other forms of retirement income are taxed at the North Carolina flat rate of 4.75 percent, and the state’s property and sales taxes are both moderate.

Virginia Beach, Virginia

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"Virginia Beach offers retirees coastal tranquility and endless recreational options,” says Nancy Helman, director of Virginia Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau. "The destination’s beautiful beaches, state parks, and biking trails, coupled with its inclusive neighborhoods and thriving arts and culinary scene, set the stage for retirees to enjoy a truly fulfilling and enriching lifestyle."

Virginia Beach’s three-mile boardwalk features a separate bike path, restaurants, shops, and entertainment. There’s also the Sandler Center for the Performing Arts , a local theater, and art galleries.

While Social Security income is not taxed in Virginia, other types of retirement income, like pensions and IRA and 40l(k) withdrawals, are taxable with a deduction of $12,000 for seniors. Property and sales tax rates in Virginia are low, and most cities and towns offer property tax relief for retirees over the age of 65, with the amount based on income and property value.

According to BestPlaces , the cost of living in Virginia Beach is about five percent higher than the national average. As the site reads, “Homeowners can find various housing options, ranging from single-family homes to luxurious condominiums — while renters also have access to more attractive deals nowadays.”

Surf City, New Jersey

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Located on Long Beach Island, Surf City is a town with year-round and summer-only residents. Marcus Pinto , a full-time resident, realtor, and principal with Compass, commented on the area’s sense of community and thriving art, culture, and restaurant scenes: “Surf City is a super-walkable town. You’re one block from the beach and one block from the bay. With residents living here year-round, there are more places to dine, shop, and things to do.”

Pinto predicts Long Beach Island could be the next Blue Zone . “I play pickleball with residents well into their 80s — they're healthy, active, and keeping up with much younger players.” Pinto also points out the island is accessible, just one mile from the New Jersey mainland.

According to Niche , the median home value in Surf City is $884,000. Social Security in New Jersey is not taxed, and state income taxes are low for any retirees with income from retirement accounts and pensions below $75,000 for single filers or $100,000 for joint filers. However, property taxes in New Jersey are some of the highest in the country.

Lewes, Delaware

Located where the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean meet, Lewes is a scenic ferry ride from Cape May , the southernmost point of New Jersey. With a walkable downtown, a summer farmers market, restaurants, boutiques, and antique shops, Lewes is a welcoming community with a population just over 3,000 and a median home value of $676,000 according to HomeSnacks .

T+L spoke to Grace Hoinowski of home building company Schell Brothers , who mentioned Delaware’s tax advantages and overall low cost of living have been attracting new residents, including remote workers and retirees. “The area was once seasonal, but over the past 10 years, more visitors have become full-time residents. The growing neighborhoods mean more services, amenities, restaurants, medical specialists, and improved infrastructure,” Hoinowski notes. She also points out the area’s Native American history, walkable downtown, proximity to the beach, and vintage Victorian homes.

Delaware is a tax-friendly state for retirees. It's one of just four with no state or local sales tax, and it has some of the country’s lowest property tax rates. In addition, seniors over the age of 65 may qualify for some property tax relief, depending on their income and the value of their property. There’s no estate or inheritance tax, and Delaware does not tax Social Security benefits. Income from pensions, IRAs, and 401(k)s is partially taxed.

Stony Brook, New York

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Located on the north shore of Long Island, along the Long Island Sound, Stony Brook is an appealing town for retirees. In Stony Book’s Village Center, the Long Island Music and Entertainment Hall of Fame celebrates Long Island’s music heritage, and the Stony Brook Grist Mill, dating to the 18th century, recognizes the area’s history. The Long Island Museum features art, history, and displays of early carriage transportation. Stony Brook University is part of the community, a benefit for retirees for health care and cultural opportunities.

Niche states the median home price in Stony Brook as $576,800. The Long Island Sound beaches are beautiful — and yes, stony rather than sandy. A two-hour ride on the Long Island Rail Road takes residents to Penn Station in Manhattan for the theater, restaurants, museums, and other entertainment. An hour’s drive east, the wineries of the North Fork welcome visitors for tastings, and farms provide fresh seasonal produce.

New York does not tax Social Security income , a plus for retirees in the otherwise high tax state. In addition, income from pensions and retirement, while taxable, is exempt for up to $20,000 a year. Property and sales taxes are high in New York, and the state levies a tax on estates.

Portsmouth, New Hampshire

Located on New Hampshire’s coast, Portsmouth offers a historic downtown, beaches, parks, museums, nightlife, and a scenic waterfront. The city, settled in the early 1600s, is listed as a “Distinctive Destination” by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, notable for its “stimulating mix of historic buildings, sidewalk cafes, great restaurants, art galleries, jazz clubs, and distinctive artisans’ boutiques.”

Niche calls the city one of the best places to live in New Hampshire, with a median home value of $594,000.

Local realtor Barbara Dunnington tells T+L that Portsmouth is a lovely city, popular with retirees who enjoy summer concerts, the theater, restaurants, and exploring the area’s history at Strawbery Banke Museum, with guided tours of historic homes.

According to Dunnington, “Portsmouth is a great place to live, but property in the area is expensive, and rents are high.” For retirees who find Portsmouth affordable, the city offers a vibrant, walkable downtown, a lively waterfront, and a variety of cultural opportunities.

While there's no state tax on personal income from salaries, Social Security, pensions, or retirement accounts, New Hampshire does have some of the highest property taxes in the U.S., according to SmartAsset . There's a five percent tax on interest and dividends greater than $2,400 ($4,800 for joint filers), but this is being phased out by January 2027, with declining rates until then. New Hampshire also has no sales, estate, or inheritance taxes.

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