ABSTRACT
It is widely accepted that best practice nature-based tourism can bring economic, social, and environmental benefits. Nature-based tourism worldwide enjoyed an active period of growth prior to COVID-19, with heavy tourist pressure causing environmental degradation and disturbance to fauna, especially in protected areas, being reported as a common phenomenon in many destinations. However, the COVID-19 pandemic abruptly halted travel across and within countries, causing the nature-based tourism industry to be severely disrupted on an unprecedented scale. On the other hand, lack of income due to the absence of visitors has negatively impacted management and conservation efforts at many nature-based destinations, including protected areas. At the same time, the pandemic provided much-needed space for nature-based destinations to rejuvenate while opening a window of opportunity for policymakers and destination managers to rethink and build a more resilient post-pandemic tourism in natural areas. In this light, this chapter discusses the need for a new direction in nature-based tourism and consolidates the transition to a more sustainable path in the post-pandemic era. The collective responsibilities of public and private sector actors, host communities, and academia in ‘building back better’ nature-based tourism are further discussed.
