Analysis for The Americas

As we entered the new decade the growth in air connectivity was a global success story. In fact over the last two decades (the 2000s and 2010s) the number of cities directly linked by air (city-pair connections) more than doubled while over the same period, air travel costs fell by around half, according to research from International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The meetings and events industry has quickly adapted during the disruptions of 2020, but 2021 could be even more challenging. This year there has been little option but to drastically change the production of meetings and events to a virtual online platform. Next year, as COVID-19 restrictions subside and there is a return to physical events, there will be huge decisions to be made on how to safely deliver meetings and events for internal staff and external visitors.

The US Travel Association (USTA) has revealed that domestic leisure travel is expected to decline by -24%, domestic business by -60% and international inbound travel by a staggering -76% this year in an autumn update to its 2020 Travel Forecast. The results of this report are dire, particularly for business travel, though projections for domestic leisure have marginally improved since its spring update.

A national survey commissioned by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) shows that many Americans are not expected to travel during the forthcoming holiday seasons. Results from a survey of 2,200 adults in early Nov-2020 by Morning Consult on its behalf show that 72% of Americans are unlikely to travel for Thanksgiving and 69% are unlikely to travel for Christmas, compounding the challenges for the hotel industry during this public health crisis.

When Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said this week that “over 50 per cent of business travel and over 30 per cent of days in the office will go away” it may have come with a little personal bias. His comments at the New York Times’ Dealbook conference could see us questioning future travel and make better use of technology, something that would obviously appeal to the business magnate. After all, Microsoft has already seen its Teams videoconferencing platform see active users grow almost four-fold since early Mar-2020 from 32 million to over 115 daily users.

As aviation and travel continues what can only be described as a period of darkness, the industry that emerges will look vastly different than it did before the COVID-19 outbreak. The implications are wide-ranging and highly disruptive. There will be winners and losers in the more constrained marketplace. “It is important to have some sort for a reality check,” said CAPA – Centre for Aviation’s chairman emeritus Peter Harbison during the latest edition of CAPA Live last week.

Rising COVID-19 cases throughout the United States of America is certainly taking a toll on travel plans. Latest research indicates that less Americans will travel in the coming months and more a feeling anxious about the health crisis. According to the wave 24 analysis of the COVID-19 Travel Sentiment Study from market research consultancy Longwoods International less than six in 10 (58%) of all travellers now have travel plans in the next six months, the lowest percentage since the beginning of the pandemic in early Mar-2020.

Millennials and higher-income travellers are the groups ready to return to traveling and lead the travel recovery into 2021, according to new research presented by Berkshire Hathaway Travel Protection (BHTP). In recent years, millennials emerged as the generation that travels the most, followed by mature (55+) travellers. However, the pandemic has further widened the gap between millennials and other age groups.

The incoming Administration in Washington DC led by US President-elect, Joe Biden, is expected to have some major implications for an airline industry mired in turmoil. President-elect Biden’s outline transport strategy emphasised the building of extensive rail infrastructure and his Administration will be strong on the environment and climate change.

This year has impacted everyone’s travel plans dramatically, but it has seemingly also changed the way we travel. Whether it is a business trip, a weekend break or a longer holiday it appears that more and more of us are going alone, according to new research from in-destination travel provider Welcome Pickups.