In this episode of Euromonitor International’s Travel Leaders Podcast, Caroline Bremner, Head of Travel Research speaks to Mario Hardy, CEO of Pacific Asia Travel Association about the challenges that the travel industry is facing in reaction to the coronavirus (COVID-19).

We discuss how Asian destinations are responding, the importance of diversifying source markets and promoting domestic tourism to help mitigate the impact of falling Chinese demand and the need for trusted information and potential recovery times.

In the wake of the Greta movement, we debate whether we have reached a tipping point in terms of consumer awareness about climate change, while destinations are waking up to the need to pursue sustainable tourism development, based on actionable and measurable results. 

We also talk about how technology can be used to enhance experiences in such a high touch industry and how artificial intelligence like digital assistants can help to automate business travel based on personal preferences.

Finally, Mario also shares his insights into what the future of travel may look like with the emergence of AI and the future of air transport from supersonic flights to electric aircraft.