Turning Around Travel & Tourism

The tourism industry, in the round, may be in the gutter right now as I write this piece on Monday, May 4th, 2020, I have no doubt that there are those who work in this wonderful industry are looking at the stars. Just like Fly Cruise Stay (Fly High Pay Low) ? Travel and tourism was built on collaboration, it is therefore of huge importance that a coordinated approach is implemented in order to, in the lyrics of Bob Marley’s song Exodus to ‘get movement of jah people’. Governments, Tourism boards, Airlines, Hotels, Cruise Lines, Destination Management Companies, Car Rental Agencies, Tour Operators, Travel Agencies, et al all have a vested interest in ensuring (as best we can) optimum conditions are in place in order to afford the safety, security and subsequent confidence of our mutual holidaymaker.

The purpose of this article is to attempt to contribute in some small way and to find solutions and make predictions on how the industry will get back on track. A timeline of events will need to happen in order to get people visiting the world’s beaches, attractions, landmarks and events. In short, governments may need to issue a bi-lateral 'safe to travel declaration' along with some form of guarantee to potential tourists that their safety and care is assured. Their tourism boards then need to work with airlines, tour operators, travel agencies, et al who in turn will promote and sell those destinations with confidence.

Covid-19 – public enemy number one. Let’s deal with you first and foremost. We need a vaccine, that is clear. There are scientists and immunologists working around the clock trying hard to develop one. It will come, and when it does, I hope those who are sceptical of taking vaccines will trust that it is safe and inoculate themselves to prevent and protect their loved ones from contacting Covid-19. In the meantime, until a reliable vaccine is developed and mass produced, we must carry on and work out a way to safely and securely get the travel and tourism industry back in business while protecting at all costs our mutual clients, passengers, guests and tourists.

Policy, processes and procedure will be paramount when it comes to dealing with groups of people on the move. Sensible and safe measures will be required to facilitate those in transit. Lets’ look at airports and airlines first, which I deem key enablers of the recovery. It is imperative we get the airlines back in the air as soon as it is safe to do so, for the longer they remain grounded, the more chance they will cease to exist and less airlines mean less competition which in turn equates to monopolies on routes, leading to much higher fares. Airlines have had not such a good 2019 to begin with due to the horrific Boeing 737-MAX crashes. They have been looking forward to replacing older aircraft with more modern fuel-efficient aircraft such as the Boeing 737-MAX. Until that particular aircraft receives air certification, they were left with no choice to fly the older models which consume more fuel. Did you know fuel can be up to 40% of the operational cost of an airline? There is so much ground to cover in aviation, here is my two cents worth.

Take the Ryanair model, like most airline models, it’s all about bums on seats, otherwise known as the load factor -the percentage of seats sold on a particular flight. The more seats sold, the more profitable the flight – basic economics. While the notion of having an empty middle seat in each row may sound fantastic for passengers like me who like a window seat and consider it a bonus if the middle seat remains free, it is not so good for the airline. Can you imagine if every middle seat on every flight remained empty? The airline would have no choice but to raise fares and the fare increase would simply be passed onto the passenger, so we will all end up paying that good bit extra for the nice but unnecessary creature comfort. More importantly, the environmental impact would be extreme. To have aircraft flying around with a lot of empty seats is very bad for our planet.

What would have to change is the turnaround time of a Ryanair flight due to a more thorough deep cleaning of the aircraft. It would be practically impossible to safely cleanse a Ryanair Boeing 737-800 at the current twenty-minute turnaround time. I like things to be hygienically cleaned, however I would be concerned about what type of cleaning products are used, are they cancerogenic, or bad for the environment? Some germs are actually good for you and can actually help protect your immune system, so let’s not sanitize ourselves off the face of the planet.   

The wearing of masks inflight won’t achieve much in terms of protection. With such a shortage of masks around the world, we really should leave the masks for the medical professionals. The laws of economics will dictate huge price inflation on masks should we all begin to wear them and will only lead to another shortage in the global supply chain. When you decide to eat or drink food, the masks will have to be removed while doing so. Plastic gloves are just as bad and will only add to the mountain of waste generated by humankind. It is a crying shame to see used plastic gloves discarded in supermarket trollies and I predict the same careless practice will apply in airports and ports once they open. Both airports, ports, stations, hotels, conference venues, airlines, cruise lines, trains, busses, private hire vehicles will have to up their cleaning standards more than ever and employ additional cleaning staff to help instil confidence in their customers that it is indeed safe to travel.  

Look at the flight boarding procedure, current airport design cannot accommodate social / physical distancing. In particular, flights that require you to board a bus to take you to the aircraft parked remotely. How is that going to work? What if you require to take an elevator while at the airport, that too is not ideal? Apart from the introduction of hand sanitizer stations, there is not much airports can do. Even thermal screening and thermometer checks are pretty much pointless to a certain extent. Security screening, while absolutely necessary, (not quite sure on the 100ml liquid rule - the bane of many travellers), may need to incorporate an additional measure to check for symptomatic passengers prior to getting airside access. Perhaps, even before the passenger gains access to an area where there is a congregation of large numbers of people, a separate station may be required. The current flow for those travelling by air is as follows A: Check-in Desk or Baggage Drop, (if checked in online) B. Security Screening, C. Gate Passport / Boarding card inspection, D. Airplane Boarding card inspection, and on arrival, E. Border control (passport) & F. Customs control (luggage).  

We would need to look at boarding anyone over the age of sixty-five first, those requiring special assistance, families, followed by business class passengers and finally economy, based on seat zones.

Warren Buffet, one of the world’s astute investors may have shed all Berkshire Hathaway airline shares, citing the world has (at least for now) changed a little, indeed the world has, and always will continue to change. Maybe not at a pace of the rate of change that Warren is comfortable with.

The idea of hotels leaving alternate rooms empty is going to become a total waste of effort since it will achieve very little. Hotels as we know, cannot operate a profitable business solely on room sales, axillary services such as food and beverage, spa etc are crucial and have to be fully operational in order to achieve a healthy profit margin. They will need to be a lot cleverer with interior design and how to best achieve optimum floor layout and uninterrupted flow models for visiting paying guests. Hospitality is, and will always be a personal experience with people at the forefront. Going too tech driven and automated will not bode well for high ranking hotels whose discerning guests expect the personal touch and have paid for the privilege. In this industry it will always be about exceeding client’s expectations by over delivering as well as never over promising.

Cruise lines were also hardest hit from Covid-19, due in part to the number of guests being infected while on-board. What didn’t help the cruise industry was the average pax age was above average and as a result, were more susceptible to picking up Covid-19 due to a weaker genetic immune system. I always found cleanliness levels onboard cruise lines to be top notch. I was saddened to read that some ports refused cruise ships entry in order to allow guests disembark. Cruise lines should not forget those ports who was there for them during those crucial moments when they needed emergency assistance most and more importantly, remember those ports who shunned them away.  

We don’t need a traveller health certificate as there is quite a lot we still don’t know about Covid-19. Namely, if you become infected and recover, can you get it again? You may obtain a traveller health certificate from your Doctor a few days before travel, but what’s stopping you from picking up Covid-19 before you fly? You could be asymptomatic and would not know you even had it and could pass it on to others unknowingly.

I intend to continue to travel, but will evaluate any risk in doing so based on the following quick analysis: What restrictions / requirements are needed prior to visiting a particular destination? Can I obtain travel insurance, and if so, how much will it cost? What restrictions / requirements are expected returning back home from a particular destination? What undue and possibly extreme measures will I experience while in transit to a particular destination? Bearing in mind I will no doubt comply with same under respect of the authorities). What can I do when I get there in terms of what tourist attractions are open to the public? (How much will it cost to travel to a particular destination? I’m sure you, the reader will have additional questions too.

What has been of interest is that yet again, Covid-19 has proven that the licencing and bonding model is not fit for purpose. Similar to the crash of Thomas Cook and Low Cost Holidays, ATOL requires a complete overhaul. A trust fund should be set up, with a small percentage incorporated into the cost of every holiday / flight / hotel / cruise, that will A: provide in the event of repatriation cost. B. Protect against supplier default and C. Insure you unconditionally from Covid-19, Ebola, Zika, or similar (apart from deliberate negligence). No monies (commissions payable) from the fund should be withdrawn until the consumer returns from their trip. We operate a similar model, known as the consumed booking model at Fly Cruise Stay (Fly High Pay Low) ? and by doing so, have weathered the Covid-19 storm better than our competitors. So much so, we have given all our suppliers a payment holiday on consumed booking until September 1st, 2020. Traditional agents have been left short by suppliers, namely airlines, who they have passed on client’s monies to, but are under immense pressure and are still finding it difficult to obtain the refund from the airline in order to pass it onto their client base. The same agents, who were screaming at the airlines for cash refunds are now requesting that the same method applies to booked holidays and are requesting their clients accept credit notes instead of cash refunds, especially at a time when their clients need the money now more than ever due in part to either losing their job or being on reduced hours. It’s an embarrassing mess– where is the client’s money? Not even one cent of any money obtained from clients should not be spent until the client returns, and only then should the fare be distributed to suppliers on an agreed basis.

The M.I.C.E. (meetings, incentives, conferences and events) industry will probably be the last to recover. F.I.T.'s will be among the first to take advantage of the lifting of restrictions. Escorted groups may suffer a little to begin with, due in nature to the slightly older age profile. Luxury holidays should be o.k. to an extent. Travel to remote areas, safari's, expeditions, will continue more or less unabated. All of the above depending of course on individual destinations and the relaxing of restrictions.

I am going to cover travel insurance in another article since it is far too elaborate and detailed and there is quite a lot of ground to cover. Ground might I add which is similar to a minefield. Suffice to say, travel insurance companies have been finding the going extremely tough of late – so much so, most of whom having recently declined offering Covid-19 protection, trip cancellation or curtailment.

At least on a positive note, while travel and tourism has slowed down to a virtual standstill, Mother Earth is catching a must needed rest and will look resplendent in all her glory for visitors to enjoy responsibly. There have been great strides to combat negative effects travel has on the environment, namely discontinuing the bad habit of providing single use plastic as well as the preservation and protection of areas of outstanding natural beauty, along with introduction of greener, cleaner aircraft and cruise ships. Revenue generated by the travel industry is of upmost importance for destinations which rely heavily on tourism. It is vital a recovery is achieved in order to sustain local employment and provide a living wage for those in the tourism sector who were hardest hit by the severe downturn caused by Covid-19.

Travel will return, but in the meantime, we must remain alert, not alarmed, and staying on guard while being cautiously optimistic. In the words of Mr. Spock "It's life, Jim, but not as we know it."

(What he actually said was): "No life as we know it." So, taking from the same vein, travel as we once knew it may not be the same - for now at least or until a proven vaccine is found.

Declan Hughes Director

www.FlyCruiseStay.com