Risk & Crisis Management in Tourism Sector:
Recovery from Crisis
in the OIC Member Countries
148
6.4.6. Recovery Phase – Long-term
There may inevitably be a period when the business is closed, especially if there is structural
damage or if thewider destinationhas experienced infrastructural damage, and even if the business
has not actually closed down, visitor numbers may have declined considerably. This is the time to
address the future impact of the situation on the business. Key aspects to cover are:
 A review of costs and pricing: can costs can be reduced, perhaps by switching the energy
supplier to access a cheaper tariff? Cutting staff hours is preferable to laying people off
entirely. With staff on a formal employment contract this can only be achieved within
the terms of their contract or according to national labour legislation. Can prices be
heavily discounted in order to attract people back? This tactic has been used by tour
operators such as The Gambia Experience to draw visitors back to The Gambia after the
brief crisis early in 2017.
 A review of the product offer: this may be the moment to put into operation plans for
diversifying the product to take account of market trends. For instance, in Sri Lanka after
the shock of the 2004 tsunami, some businesses took advantage of the initial decline in
business and then the renewed interest to re-build and re-launch themselves: the
Ranweli Resort is located on the coast and initially operated on a traditional ‘sun, sea
and sand’ model, but during the late 1990s it was refurbished as an eco-friendly venture.
After the 2004 tsunami its renewed identity came into its own as it devised new
promotions based around environmentally friendly policies and wellness tourism. Also
in Sri Lanka, the government launched a new beach festival at the coastal resort of
Hikkaduwa after the tsunami to help revitalise the industry and extend the season
further into the shoulder months.
 A review of target markets: are regional or domestic markets developing so that local
tourists can take the place of foreign ones? In Indonesia, after the financial and political
crisis of the late 1990s and the Bali bombings of 2002 caused a decline in Western and
East Asian markets, many hotels and guesthouses targeted local consumers instead. In
some cases, prices per person had to be lowered to allow for the different economic
characteristics of domestic tourists, but profit margins overall could often be
maintained by allowing more people to occupy each room, in keeping with cultural
norms. More recently, Egypt has been targeting Middle Eastern markets more strongly
in place of its prior focus on Western ones. One measure is to introduce a simplified e-
visa programme for visitors from Gulf Arab States (Yousef, 2017).
 Tourism operators should ensure a close working relationship with other businesses in
the same geographical area or the same niche, especially through DMOs and through
trade associations. It is much easier for governments to filter advice and information on
market research, fiscal changes or support packages through these larger organisations
than to individual enterprises, especially as the tourism landscape in most countries is
dominated by SMEs (i.e. Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises).