The COVID-19 outbreak posed severe challenges to tourism and hospitality. The volume of COVID-19-pertinent research has remarkably grown. This study conducted a systematic review of initial COVID-19 research in tourism and hospitality using a mixed-method approach to enable researchers to understand the state-of-the-art knowledge. Content analysis and bibliometric analysis were conducted. At the initial research stage, research themes of more than 70% of related articles focused on the theme of responses to COVID-19. Additional findings were provided in the study. This study provides an overview of the research in its initial stage to gain academics’ attention to the COVID-19 research in tourism and hospitality. In the future, a periodical review of this realm is necessary to reflect the changes in research focus.