Lessons for resilience building in tourism and hospitality: the case of New Zealand

Purpose This opinion piece outlines the actions taken by the New Zealand government and tourism sectors in response to Covid-19 and to explore the potential lessons for resilience building in tourism for other destinations. Design/methodology/approach The analysis integrates descriptions of the Covid-19 outbreak and tourism-related policy responses in New Zealand, taken from prominent medical, governmental and journalistic accounts. Findings The resilience of the economy and domestic tourism was a major New Zealand policy priority, but this was seen by the Ardern administration as best achieved by first ensuring the health and well-being of the populace, as quickly and comprehensively as possible. This, in turn, required proactive, nationally coordinated measures designed to minimize the spread of Covid-19 including: lockdowns, preventive social-distancing and mask mandates, a four-level graduated strategy for ensuring national Covid-19 recovery (which later morphed into the "traffic light" system) and closely following the medical and epidemiological advice of experts in the related academic sciences. As a result of these, the negative impact on health, the overall economy and the tourism sector was substantially minimized, when compared with many other similar nations during the 2020-2022 period. Originality/value The New Zealand experience holds important lessons for preserving and rebuilding the hospitality and tourism industry in the aftermath of Covid-19, and during future similar pandemics.