Ep 95: 10 Tough Travel Learnings From the First Three-Quarters of 2021
Apple Podcasts
Spotify
Google
PodbeanAbout This Episode
28 Sep 2021 • 37m21sAs South East Asia enters the 4th quarter of 2021, Gary and Hannah bash heads together to create a list of 10 top travel learnings from a year that – as yet – hasn’t really got going. Perhaps a rush of travel activity awaits around the corner… but 2021 has taught the travel industry some harsh lessons.
So on this week’s show, we discuss the following points:
- 2021 is shaping up to worse than 2020 for tourism businesses
- Governments being in control of travel is a disaster
- Any ASEAN cooperation is a pipe dream
- South East Asian tourism planners are directionless without Chinese tourists
- Vaccines have not been the save-all the tourism industry thought they would be
- Reopening may come down to 2 models: Thailand’s Phuket Sandbox or Singapore’s Vaccinated Travel Lane
- Pent-up demand is probable, but not guaranteed
- Overlooking domestic markets is a long-term mistake
- Outbound travel is of little importance to governments and
- Media reporting of travel during the pandemic is clickbait driven.
Latest Episodes Catch up with the pods you may have missed
Play
19 Mar 2026 • 22m55s
Ep 291: As the Energy Crisis Impacts Spread Across Asian Travel, Can K-pop Save the World?
As the energy crisis impacts start to diversify across Asia, Gary and Hannah ask a simple question: Can K-pop save the world? This week’s journey takes us from Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia and Laos to Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines, plus Maldives and Sri Lanka. En route we assess some of the radiating outcomes of war in the Middle East that go far beyond airlines and air connectivity. And we turn to South Korea for hope and inspiration.
Play
13 Mar 2026 • 33m52s
Ep 290: The Economic Impacts of War in the Middle East for Travel & Tourism Across South East Asia
“It’s a cliche to say that everything is in flux, and that there is a great deal of uncertainty across travel economies. But it’s true.” The US and Israel’s ongoing aerial bombardment of Iran and Lebanon - and the worsening unintended consequences of retaliatory strikes on energy assets and other installations across the Middle East - are raising crisis fears across Asian economies. Travel and tourism are once again in the cross-hairs, and it’s starting to feel like Covid 2.
