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The COVID-19 pandemic is an unprecedented global crisis. Many countries have implemented restrictions on population movement, instituting full or partial lockdowns in Spring 2020 as nowadays. The Coronavirus emergency has imposed the need to introduce restrictions that have also had a great impact on tourism. The interventions of the European Commission and the containment policies of the population adopted by different member States, as well as by those outside Europe, have resulted in the closure and crisis of the tourism sector in most of the destinations. What it can be observed it’s a sort of “low tide” of the tourist flows all around the world. Moving from these considerations, the paper aims at contributes to the debate on the binomial COVID-19 and tourism. After an introductory frame of the pandemic ongoing phenomenon, the paper focuses on the dynamics relating to the crucial sectors of air and cruise tourism, moving then to the analysis of the coastal and inland areas’ situation. The proposed analysis is developed through the consideration of three elements characterizing the current scenario: the relevance of the pandemic shock wave; the adaptability of companies and operators’ behaviour to changes and challenges; the unexpected and countertrend situation of arising positive externalities in some areas, such as the internal ones.

Nel presente contributo è indagato il tema della valenza socio-tecnologica che accompagna le transizioni paradigmatiche, come quella del 5G, soprattutto in piccole realtà quali quelle dei piccoli borghi. Nella riflessione proposta, anche attraverso una indagine empirica, viene evidenziata la valenza di alcuni fattori di influenza nella catalizzazione dei processi di implementazione di nuove tecnologie, rispettivamente in ordine alla importanza del fattore di scala locale e al valore delle iniziative di partecipazione.

In the last few decades, the tourism sector in Europe has been facing growing demands from travellers who want better access in hotels, at holiday destinations and tourist attractions. The number of European travellers in the 55+ age group is increasing and, together with disabled people and their families, these customers are looking for travel options where basic accessibility features are standard. The so-called accessible tourism for all is not about providing separate services for separate targets or niche tourist markets. It aims at full integration or rather the inclusion of people with special needs (age, size, disability) in the tourism sector. Its long-term goal is the creation of a tourist environment in which all tourists can participate actively. Viewed from the perspective of accessible tourism for all, tourism policy in the European Union can be said to unite accessibility targets that are part of the otherwise trade-related aspects of tourism policy and a disability policy that, based on the United Nations’ Standard Rules, support goals and specific measures at various levels that are designed to enhance accessibility in connection with tourism policy. Within this framework, the main purpose of this research is to investigate strategies and actions to which the European Commission is committed to increase accessibility in tourism. Using a qualitative methodology, the paper explores objectives and activities of some initiatives that are helping to make travel and tourism accessible for everyone. Therefore, it offers an overview of some projects and good practices taking place in European countries.