Some countries in Asia have banked on ever-rising tourism. Without it, a growth engine for the region is sputtering. (Nikkei photo illustration/Source photos by Lauren DeCicca and Reuters)

Travel bug: Why tourism in Asia will never be the same

Bali's empty resorts, Thai luxury quarantine and an industry in crisis

DOMINIC FAULDER and ERI SUGIURA, Nikkei staff writers

August 26, 2020 06:00 JST

BANGKOK/TOKYO -- Bruno Huber says he is the happiest hotel manager in Bangkok: He actually has guests in his 293-room luxury property. A former Hilton, its legendary garden was once famous for fertility shrines dotted with large, garish wooden phalluses. Today, the garden is every bit as manicured and regal as before, but guests maintain a safe distance from each other as they tramp anticlockwise around the grounds, taking their pre-booked 45-minute exercise breaks.