Ep 68: The Current State of Travel in South East Asia and Beyond
Spotify
Google
PodbeanAbout This Episode
28 Apr 2021 • 35m00sWith the COVID-19 pandemic now in its 14 month, what have we learned and how will those lessons be – or not be – applied in future? This week, Gary and Hannah take on some of the ‘big picture’ talking points in travel and tourism in ASEAN.
The show asks, and tries to answer, 7 critical questions:
- What do travel and tourism mean today, and do we have a different outlook than before the pandemic?
- What have been the biggest changes for the travel industry - which will be temporary, and will any be permanent?
- What has been the most overlooked development so far?
- What have we learned in the first 4 months of 2021, and is the current outlook different than expected at the end of 2020?
- Are travel bubbles relevant any more now that we have vaccines?
- Realistically, what are the expectations for travel and tourism in South East Asia in 2021 - and will there be a noticeable ‘turning point’?
- Looking further ahead, what are the reasons to be optimistic, and what are the pessimistic factors?
Latest Episodes Catch up with the pods you may have missed
Play
26 Mar 2026 • 19m16s
Ep 293: A New Survey Report on the Impacts of War in the Middle East on Travel Businesses in South East Asia
“48% of South East Asian travel businesses believe that the prospects for their business in Q2 2026 are worse than they had anticipated at the start of the year.” But, dig deeper and the opinion variances between travel industry players throughout the region are noticeable. On this week’s show Hannah is in the hot seat, as Gary interviews her about a new survey report put together by her team at Pear Anderson and the ASEAN Tourism Association (ASEANTA).
Play
23 Mar 2026 • 19m02s
Ep 292: Eid Travel Trends, Thailand Merges Tourism & Culture & Vientiane's Electric Pole Superstar: Start the Week with The South East Asia Travel Show
Our fast-paced Monday morning Start The Week show is back. This week, Gary and Hannah stop over in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines in search of the answers to South East Asia’s big travel questions. We look at the Eid holiday trends across the region and even into China, and assess an intriguing new flight service connecting Vietnam, Kazakhstan and Czech Republic. Plus, we deconstruct the reasons why Thailand’s government wants to merge the Ministries of Tourism and Culture, and summarise the findings of a new report about the challenges of tourism infrastructure development in the Philippines.
