Resilience Strategies of Tour Operators During the Uncertainty of COVID-19: Evidence from Bangladesh

ABSTRACT Since the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, tour operators have been going through uncertain times as they depend directly on supply-side (e.g. airlines, hotels) and demand-side (e.g. tourists) of tourism as well as on destination management organizations. This study explores resilience strategies made by tour operators in Bangladesh that ultimately helped them survive through the COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on qualitative semi-structured interviews with 25 tour operators, findings of the study show that resilience-building depends not only on strategies of tour operators but also on supports from external agencies. The study further shows that a multi-dimensional understanding of resilience strategies is essential in tourism research and proposes that the resilience-building of tour operators can be conceptualized as a three-dimensional mechanism including innate resilience, internally-induced resilience, and externally-induced resilience. The study would facilitate improved resilience strategy and informed policymaking to better address uncertainties during and after a major crisis for tour operators.