Pandemics and Tourism: Empirical Evidence from Greek Hospitality Industry During the COVID-19 Period

This study aims to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the hospitality sector in Greece during the COVID-19 period. To this end, questionnaires were distributed in 320 enterprises operating throughout Greece exclusively in the hospitality industry. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was employed for analyzing data. The results reveal a structured transmission pathway: Business Survival Anxiety and Psychological Distress intensify Financial Strain; financial pressure constrains Strategic Capability; and diminished strategic flexibility shapes firms’ evaluation of the crisis’s overall impact. Financial Strain emerges as the central mediating mechanism, bridging managerial perceptions and organisational outcomes. These findings confirm that crisis impact is embedded in firm-level dynamics, where psychological pressures, resource constraints, and strategic contraction interact systematically. Ultimately, the study shows that the severity of the pandemic was not assessed solely in terms of immediate revenue loss, but in relation to the erosion of strategic capacity—innovation, investment potential, and long-term competitiveness. Resilience in tourism therefore depends on the alignment between psychological stability, financial robustness, and strategic adaptability.