With tourism still bouncing back from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, industry players continue to innovate and reinvent themselves to attract travelers.

As the year draws to a close and the industry is yet to make a full recovery, we look back on major tourism stories of the year, marking a tumultuous period of ups and downs.

The Diamond Princess cruise ship, operated by Carnival Corp, sits docked in Yokohama, Japan, on Feb 12. Japan’s Health Ministry confirmed an additional 39 cases of the novel coronavirus on the cruise ship in Yokohama, bringing the total number of infections from the quarantined vessel to 174 on that day. [Photo/Agencies]

1 Cruise quarantine

In February, 3,711 people were quarantined aboard cruise ship Diamond Princess in Yokohama, Japan, after a man who disembarked in Hong Kong tested positive for the coronavirus. This led to a mass cancellation of cruise trips, marking the beginning of a global tourism recession.