Myanmar possesses abundant tourist attractions such as coastal areas, coral reefs, water creatures, national marine parks like Lampi Island, UNESCO-recognized ancient cultural areas such as Bagan and Pyu city-states, and snow-capped mountains in Kachin State and the Death Railway in Thanbyuzayat of Mon State.
Likewise, the traditions and customs of ethnics and their traditional foods are attractive to the local and foreign travellers. These are invaluable sources for the development of the tourism industry. Region and state authorities need to introduce significant and diverse seasonal festivals of local ethnicities, sports meets and traditional entertainments to catch the attention of travellers. Hence, it is necessary to grasp the good opportunity to showcase these interestingly attractive figures to the travellers.
It is necessary to consider reopening border gates for international tourists to enter Myanmar. Meanwhile, Myanmar is implementing the ASEAN tourism recovery plan by adopting the policies for the recovery of businesses and drawing the common health guidelines, travel pass and safety protocol at the ASEAN level.
Myanmar earned US$2,818.75 million from the visits of 4.36 million foreign travellers to Myanmar in 2019. But, the outbreak of the pandemic COVID-19 suspended almost all tourism services. Consequently, just 0.90 million international tourists paid visits to Myanmar in 2020, a declining 79 per cent of tourists in comparison with those from 2019. So also, just 0.13 million tourists entered the country in 2021.
The statistics of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) stated that the number of tourist arrivals in 2021 increased by four per cent compared with that of 2020 but it still declined by 72 per cent rather than that of 2019. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, a total of 1.5 billion international tourists paid visits to the global countries in 2019 but 415 million in 2021.
Significantly, it is necessary to win the trust of travellers as part of motivating them to pay visits to respective regions and states by releasing information on COVID safe destinations for travellers and arranging exploration for tourists to these destinations under health and safety protocols. It is because everybody may pay visits to the same sites again and again.
As such, efforts must be made to the resurgence of the tourism industry in Myanmar in many ways of attractive measures. Supports of the government are invaluable for the development of the tourism industry with the participation of businesspersons based on awareness of raising the tourism services. Only when the tourism industry booms will it earn income from the visits of travellers.
As such, efforts must be made to the resurgence of the tourism industry in Myanmar in many ways of attractive measures. Supports of the government are invaluable for the development of the tourism industry with the participation of businesspersons based on awareness of raising the tourism services. Only when the tourism industry booms will it earn income from the visits of travellers.
