Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Tourism in the Czech Republic.

This paper aimed to find out how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the business of tourism companies in the Czech Republic, whether the companies drew state support and how they reacted to the situation. The source of data for testing hypotheses and answering research questions was a questionnaire survey. In the period May-August 2021, 52 tour operators and 571 hotels were contacted. Out of the total number of 623 addressed subjects, 111 respondents completed the questionnaire. The chi-square test in the contingency table was used to test the hypotheses. From the respondents' answers, it can be concluded that 2/3 of the respondents perceive the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their business as crucial. Still, at the same time, they believe that they can overcome the problems that have arisen. Another positive finding is that every seventh respondent understands the situation as an opportunity for change that will allow him to do business successfully in the future. More than 90 % of the respondents' companies received state support. Half of the companies have not yet felt a significant response to the COVID-19 pandemic (still waiting). One-third of companies have reduced, and only one tenth have found and implemented the opportunity in subprojects. Based on hypothesis testing, it was not possible to prove a relationship between the size of the company and the assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also failed to establish a connection between the company's position and the impact assessment of the COVID-19 pandemic. Evaluating the dependence between the COVID-19 pandemic response and the business sector has shown that dependency exists. Tour operators responded mainly by downsizing the organization and new projects, while accommodation and catering facilities waited or downsized the organization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]