Harry Sommer, chief executive of cruise firm NCL, told a panel discussion at the ITB Berlin virtual event: “The key ask is to approach this from a partnership perspective.

“Until quite recently governments have operated independently of other governments and independent of the tourism industry.

“A more collaborative approach would get us a little more quickly to our end goal.”

Nick Careen, from airlines organisation Iata, called for international standards on Covid protocols to be agreed to allow travel to resume effectively.

“There’s a lack of government clarity about when they will reopen borders and we are having to consistently change our plans,” he added. “It’s easy to shut things down but it’s not so easy to restart.”

The industry will also have to work hard to restore consumer confidence in travelling again, added Jose Filipe Torres, chief executive of Bloom Consulting.

“The main reason people don’t want to travel is because they are afraid,” he added.