The role of regionalism for tourism: an analysis of responses to Covid-19 in the European Union and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations

Abstract

This article analyses the role of regional integration schemes in the management of the COVID-19 crisis and the policies towards the tourism sector, focusing on the policies and strategies developed by the European Union (EU) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) during the pandemic crisis. It presents the concepts of old and new regionalism from the International Relations field of studies and how regional integration correlates with policies and strategies for tourism, which have been put to the test by the need to bring the activity to a halt. This is an exploratory article, which relies on a qualitative methodology based on documental research, content analysis and access to secondary data. It presents the hypothesis that the tourism sectors from countries which are part of regional organisations benefit from these structures, once they provide mechanisms for developing coordinated recovery plans and the management of tourism mobilities. As a conclusion, the article provides a possible scenario where tourism will take place in a “world of regions”, with long-haul transit between continents returning at a slower pace in comparison with a faster restart of the activity within “intraregional bubbles”, such as the EU and ASEAN.