The hospitality and tourism sector is considered the backbone for economicgrowth, especially in developing countries. However, this thriving sector is particularly vulnerable to naturaland human-made disasters. This study assesses the impact of the COVID-19 (coronavirus disease-2019) pandemic in India’s hospitality and tourism sector by addressing essential aspects such as current conditions and challenges as well as future perspectives. The secondary research methodology has been applied for the research. For data collection, the secondary data has been collected through literature, journal articles, government documents, etc. The research findings show that COVID-19 in India has significantly affected the hospitality and tourism sector. Global and domestic tourists have canceled their programs to visit the natural, historical, religious, and cultural sites. The flight tickets and the hotel reservations have been canceled. A significant number of workers in the sector have lost their jobs. This pandemic has affected the economy of the country as well as the well-being of the individuals to a large extent. As the intensification of the COVID-19 is being thought to cause a long-term impact, this study could be relevant to the decision-makers in regards to the crucial task of reviving the sector.

This study aimed to present the socio-economic conditions, during the COVID-19 pandemic, and their effects on travel decision-making. Data were collected in January and February 2021 using an online questionnaire survey. We compared the data on personal attributes, socio-economic factors, and organizational-related factors of 957 Polish and 181 Nepalese respondents. We found that people would like to travel, even during the COVID-19 pandemic, in both countries; however, tourism in developed countries is expected to revive earlier than in developing countries. Tourists chose natural and rustic areas for travel destinations and family members and friends as travel companions in both countries. Similarly, the use of travel agencies decreased significantly as compared to before the COVID-19 pandemic in both countries. Levels of income and travel motivation were observed to be different between the two countries. Respondents from both countries similarly believed that the overall cost of travel had increased during the pandemic. Therefore, policymakers and authorities of tourism destinations should jointly introduce discounted or subsidized packages targeting family members.

The tourism industry is one of the most affected industries by the COVID-19 pandemic. Understanding travel motivation is necessary for the tourism movement, even in the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus, this quantitative study aimed to explore travel motivation and its determinants. We collected 181 samples through a web-based questionnaire survey of the Nepali people in January and February 2021. The data were analyzed using a probit regression model through two different travel companion perspectives, i.e., traveling with friends and traveling with family members. We found that travel motivation, attributes, travel purpose, and transport mode preferences differed in companion groups. Specifically, those who want to travel with friends are government employees, 20–29 years of age, set health and wellness purposes, choose the bike for transportation, are less willing to visit homestay and agritourism, and want to travel for around one week. Those who plan to travel with family members use the coach to travel, choose rural destinations, including villages, and spend around two weeks. Based on these findings, we suggest that the Nepalese tourism destination and public transport companies make tourism packages targeting the groups. Since both groups showed interest in visiting rural destinations, we can say that tourism in rural destinations may revive earlier than urban tourism after the pandemic. However, a low-risk travel environment should be ensured for traveling to attract more tourists during and the post-disaster.

This study aims to explore the problems and potential of medical tourism in India. India has become one of the destination countries for medical tourists from around the world. However, due to issues at both the policy and operational levels, India, like many other such countries, faces a number of problems in the development of its medical tourism industry. Indian medical tourism can be divided into four categories: surgical treatment, cosmetic surgery, alternative medicine, and wellness treatment. In this study, the authors focus on alternative medicine and wellness tourism and explore the possibilities and problems.Results of the current study show that India’s medical tourism industry has great potential, as international tourists can visit India at a relatively low cost, there is an easy visa process, and India offers world-class and standardized medical services, services for alternative medical treatment, and more. Nonetheless, to realize this potential, the medical tourism industry in India must address with a variety of problems, including the absence of standardized herbal drugs and medicines as well as authentic raw materials, lagging processing technologies, the need for improved infrastructure, and lack of sufficient training for non-medical staff in cross-cultural sensitivity and language skills.

Small businesses in world heritage sites provide services to visitors and livelihood for residents. Besides the cultural and religious values promoted by these businesses, they also provide socioeconomic support to their owners. The Pashupatinath temple is known as Hindu’s major religious and pilgrimage destination in South Asia. Hundreds of businesses around the temple provide services to visitors. This study evaluates the socioeconomic impacts of these small businesses around Pashupatinath temple. Using a survey of 110 businesses, binary logistic regression models find that the owners of larger businesses selling religious supplies in this area are more likely to own houses in Kathmandu and to be more satisfied with their businesses. The study also finds that businesses without permanent stalls faced severe hardship during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study assessed the socioeconomic status of a business owner through house ownership in Kathmandu, and finds that small businesses operating in the premises of the religious heritage site of Pashupatinath temple have a positive relation to the livelihood of the business owners and their families. It concludes that small-scale business in world heritage sites directly contributes to local livelihoods and economies.