A Survey on the Complex Aspects of COVID-19 in Pleasure and Commercial Touristic Destinations: A Comparative Case Study in Business Level (مقاله علمی وزارت علوم)

چکیده

Although the prevalence of COVID-19 pandemic and the worldwide periodic lockdowns, and travel restrictions have heavily damaged tourism destinations, however some theorists believe that the channels and intensity of adverse effects of COVID-19 are not even in different tourism destinations and it may depend on the tourism form that the destination is endowed with. The purpose of this research is to fulfill a comparative survey between two different tourism destinations that enjoy two different tourism forms, including pleasure tourism (Ganjnameh region) and commercial based tourism (Lalejin region) in Iran and try to explore the different complex aspects of COVID-19 effects on tourism industry and compare sustainability of both tourism forms. In order that, we apply Grounded Theory (GT) model and relay on qualitative data gathered by face-to-face interviews with 40 participants who are engaged in tourism related businesses in sample destinations. In according to the results, this study critically derives 4 different aspects of complexity of the situation arisen from corona virus pandemic on tourism sector in Ganjnameh and Lalejin including: resilience strategies and sustainability, change in tourist behavior, change in the tourism industry, and aggravating factors. In addition, the results showed that changes to tourism as a result of COVID-19 is complex and uneven in two different tourist destinations. Moreover, we realized that the economic statues of Ganjnameh region which is widely depend on pleasure tourism is more vulnerable to unexpected tourism crises compared to the Lalegin region, where the economics of a big bulk of habitants depends on commercial tourisms and handicrafts. Therefore, the commercial based touristic destinations looks more resilient and sustainable in comparison to pleasure tourism formed destinations. This study released valuable information about current statues and future concerns about tourism industry and offers suitable policy implications to cope with COVID-19 effects during and after Corona crisis.