New Coronavirus Rules That Are Dampening The Travel Industry

The year 2021 was starting to look like a year that is going to be a much better one from 2020 for travel industry as vaccinations have already started and restrictions were reduced a lot. But, with the enforcement of the new Covid-19 virus guidelines, the travel industry which was beaming with new hopes has now been dampened. Now only will it reduce the bookings but there is no hope for the industry in 2021 as it seems like. The host agency Travel Experts’ advisors also had the same expectations but it turned out to be just the opposite.

New Coronavirus Rules That Are Dampening The Travel Industry

As per Travel Experts, there was an increase in the bookings in the first month i.e., January 2021. But, the new restrictions to curb the virus have also impacted on the trips taken by people and they have started to wait before booking flights or hotels to see how these new rules are affecting travel. There is no rush among people to book tickets for 2021, except to book for rollovers of their previously cancelled vacations and future cruises as said by operations director of the Travel Expert, Sharon Fake.

In a recent poll of the members, the host’s agency found that among vacationers domestic places are the most popular among their clients. They have seen that travel to Europe is followed by Mexico, trips to Caribbean, and Hawaii. Most of the members are of the opinion that people who care to book are rescheduling their trips which got cancelled in 2020. The key in rebuilding a client’s confidence to travel is communicating with them. Lisa L. Professor of Chartwell Luxury Travel, Mooresville, Indiana, shared her personal experiences with clients about her own travel plans that included her tours and flight experiences for which she saw a positive response. 

The same experience was noted by Eileen Anderson, Journeys Afar in Raleigh, North Carolina who stated that people need someone to reassure them that they will be safe and enjoy their holidays, instead of the hassles due to the new formed rules. She said that by being upfront in dispersing the correct information about the news boosts the confidence of the client. She also reassures people about her role as an advocate and information processor which makes them enthusiastic and overwhelmingly grateful about their future travel. It has been reported by the travel advisors that both ends of the spectrum can be used by bookings.

Mallory Shaw, Trouvaille Yacht & Travel in Nashville, said that many of their clients are planning their travels either in the early of 2022 or in the end 2021 or some are even booking at the last minute to destinations which are within Caribbean, Mexico and U.S. and often just a week ahead. Testing and quarantines are affecting some of their client trips as travel advisors are stating. 

Elaine Carey who works at Travel Expert in the Pines in Whispering Pines, North Carolina states that she had seen many of her colleagues that were planning their travel in the first quarter for the clients had to cancel the bookings because of the change in international rules which includes post and pre Covid-19 tests but also requires a quarantine once they return. She further added such rules will bring down the travel industry once again as a week of vacation gets turned into a quarantine of three to five weeks. So, travel experts are looking into ways to disseminate information and provide various options that are available for travelers and to help them understand various rules and regulations related to the same.