Image: Reuters Berita 24 English - Asian tourists won't be able to travel abroad at the same rate as before the pandemic until 2024, th...
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| Image: Reuters |
Omri Morgenstern, who took over as CEO of Agoda in July and focuses on Asia, said that it will take about six months for tourists from Asian countries other than China to feel safe travelling again after COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.
"Two months ago, Korea opened up... But the number of people is only 40% of what it used to be, so it's not jumping "he said.
Morgenstern told Reuters in an interview that Agoda's bookings have returned to 2019 levels in all of its Asian markets, but more so in domestic travel. This is in contrast to the stronger and faster tourism recovery in the U.S. and Europe.
"In the U.S. or Europe, it's almost like everyone decided COVID was over," said Morgenstern, noting that travel quickly started up again and many people stopped wearing masks.
But in many Asian countries, like Thailand, South Korea, Singapore, and Indonesia, where masks were once required, most people have kept wearing them even after the law was changed.
Morgenstern said that Agoda is adding more products that will let customers plan their whole trip on the platform and offer more discounts.
The company, which was a part of Booking Holdings Inc., cut 1,500 jobs in 2020 to save money because of the pandemic. Now, he said, the number of employees is back to where it was before COVID.
