The aviation sector is leading the way in terms of how and where we recover. Recovery right now is very much connectivity and capacity-driven and no destination can recover on its own.

These were the sentiments of Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) CEO Liz Ortiguera as a guest speaker in this round of Pacific Tourism Organisations (SPTO) Reopening the Pacific webinar series.

Ms Ortiguerapresented PATAs recent forecast and a synopsis of the travel recovery initiatives currently underway by the association to support its members and the broader industry.

“Our strengths or our approach is that we can take global issues with local relevance on the ground and we dedicate our platform and resources to helping our members through the course of this recovery. Recovery of the region is a mixed bag right now as it is uneven and the dynamics are changing,” Ms Ortiguera said.

“One of our critical aspects is how can we get that connectivity back and up and running, and also forge new opportunities. So what we have tried to do at PATA is help bring our members the resources and better understand how this recovery is unfolding. We changed our forecast updates more frequently from annually to quarterly and this was because of the source of our data which comes from the Governments themselves from the 39 destinations.

The PATA CEO also shared that destinations across the region were now venturing into new source markets with China still closed and much of East Asia and North Asia still very limited, the opportunities have now emerged in other and different ways.

Adding that as PATA members were reopening and to rebuild traveller confidence, the association had embarked on a regional umbrella brand campaign of both public and private entities “Asia is calling” targeting western travellers.

“We know that the heart and origin of PATA are the Pacific Islands and we will find more ways to support the Pacific islands. PATA Chapters have also highlighted that they want to market and sell Pacific islands. So for PATA we now have to assess how we can tap into the diversity and strength of our network. This is the first of the series of dialogues and how are things evolving and how can we can support the Pacific region in its recovery.  We need to think about new partnerships – new ways to collaborate- opportunities for us to collaborate in times of a crisis,” Ms Ortiguera said

In acknowledging the importance of the reopening of borders to international travel and tourism in the Asia Pacific region and the work carried out by PATA with its members, SPTO CEO Christopher Cocker also highlighted that SPTO and PATA were in discussions to renew its Memorandum of Understanding and explore opportunities to collaborate for future events.

Mr Cocker also highlighted that international tourism and travel continue to show signs of a strong and steady recovery from the impact of the pandemic adding that tourism growth in the Pacific is also picking up steadily.

“Such partnerships are most successful at increasing visibility of Pacific tourism destinations and would also lead to improved visitor experiences and provide social and economic benefits to local communities. And like PATA, SPTO will continue to build and strengthen partnerships with its development partners for the benefit of our members,” Mr Cocker said.