Crisis Communication of Tourist Agencies in the Area of the City of Zagreb during the 2020 Pandemic

Pandemija COVID-19 u 2020. promijenila je cijeli svijet i uzrokovala je stagnaciju svih gospodarskih grana. Zbog zatvaranja granica i epidemioloških mjera koje su države diljem svijeta implemntirale, putovanja su bila onemogućena. Turistička industrija jedna je od najpogođenij industrija ovom krizom. Ovaj rad pruža uvid u važnost turizma kao gospodarske grane u svijetu te ukazuje koliko zapravo je turizam važan za opstanak cjelokupnog hrvatskog gospodarstva. Putničke agencije u Hrvatskoj u uspješnim godinama prije pandemije dovele su veliki broj posjetitelja na našu obalu i Grad Zagreb. Međutim pred izazovima pandemije njihovo poslovanje gotovo je bilo u potpunosti onemogućeno. Ovaj rad analizirat će koliko je pandemija utjecala na turističke brojke te kako su se putničke agencije na području Grada Zagreba nosile s izazovima 2020. godine, čije je planove osim pandemije pomrsio i potres. Fokus istraživanja koje će ovaj rad predstaviti je promidžbena i krizna komunikacija putničkih agencija na području Grada Zagreba u 2020. godini.The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. changed the whole world and caused the stagnation of all economic sectors. Due to border closures and epidemiological measures implemented by countries around the world, traveling was impossible. The tourism industry is one of the most affected industries by this crisis. This paper provides an insight into the importance of tourism as an economic branch in the world and indicates how important tourism is for the survival of the entire Croatian economy. Travel agencies in Croatia in the successful years before the pandemic brought a large number of visitors to our coast and the City of Zagreb. However, in the face of the challenges of the pandemic, their business was almost completely disabled. This paper will analyse the impact of the pandemic on tourism in general and how travel agencies in the City of Zagreb have coped with the challenges of 2020., whose plans were thwarted not only by the pandemic but also by the earthquake. The focus of the research that this paper will present is the promotional and crisis communication of travel agencies in the City of Zagreb in 2020