The Impact of COVID-19 on the Development of the Segment of the International Tourism Market in Ukraine Focused on Arab Tourists

¹ University of Economics and Humanities, Department of Marketing, 43-300, ul. gen. Wł. Sikorskiego 4-4c, Bielsko-Biala, Poland
² Sumy State Pedagogical University named after A. S. Makarenka, Department of Business Economics and Administration, 40002, Romenska str., 87, Sumy, Ukraine
³ Sumy National Agricultural University, Research Section, 40021, Herasyma Kondratieva str., 160, Sumy, Ukraine
⁴ National Technical University “Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute”, Department of Economic Cybernetics and Marketing Management, 61002, Kyrpychova str., 2, Kharkiv, Ukraine
⁵ University of Silesia in Katowice, Institute of Socio-Economic Geography and Spatial Management, 41200, Bedzinska str. 60, Sosnowiec, Poland
⁶ Wroclaw University of Science and Technology, Department of Organization and Management, 50370, Wybrzeże Wyspiańskiego str. 27, Wroclaw, Poland
⁷ Technical-Humanistic Academy, Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship, 43309, Willowa str. 2, Bielsko-Biala, Poland

^* Corresponding author: golysheva@gmail.com

Abstract

The article is devoted to determining the set of external and internal prerequisites for the extending influx of Arab countries’ tourists to Ukraine in 2021 under the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions introduced in most countries. Quantitative characteristics of the flow of tourists are outlined. The main characteristics and preferences of tourists from Arab countries who visited Ukraine are determined. It is established that in conditions of restrictions caused by COVID-19, they consider Ukraine as an alternative vocation location to traditional places in European countries. A generalized profile of these tourists has been compiled. It can serve as an information base for improving tourist products (services) and the system of service rendering. An assessment of prospects for developing the international tourism market segment in Ukraine focused on tourists from Arab countries has been made. The study results can be used to make effective management decisions in the field of international tourism at the state and regional levels, as well as at the level of individual tourism service providers in the context of the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic and its completion.