Tourism – The goal for 2022 is normalization

The goal of the tourism industry is to take an important step towards normalization in 2022, which, however, is expected to come after two and three years. For tourism, everything depends on the course of the coronavirus cases. The decisions of several countries to deal with the pandemic have dealt a severe blow to international tourism.

Just a few months ago, many countries eased restrictive measures to then impose new ones in the middle of the Christmas holidays in response to the outbreak of the Omicron mutation. Many airlines have even canceled a significant number of flights due to crew disease. Everyone is now hoping for next summer.

A survey of the German Tourist Association (DRV) among its members shows that more than 50% of bookings are for the summer months. It is interesting that only 10% of travel agents expect summer turnovers at the levels of 2019. At the same time 5% expect total revenue at levels similar to the pre-pandemic period, in 2022.

“Uncertainty is the enemy”

“We are still a long way from the end of the crisis,” Peter Harbison of the Center for Aviation (CAPA) think tank recently told a news conference. HSBC analysts note that the outbreak of the Omicron mutation, which is known to be spreading faster than the Delta, is wreaking havoc on travel restrictions in Europe and adversely affecting demand.

At the moment all over the world the plans are made for precautionary reasons based on the worst case scenario. But the unpredictability of travel rules potentially prevents tourists from planning trips for fear of being barred from the destination country without the possibility of returning home. “The enemy is uncertainty,” said analyst Andrew Lobenberg.

Despite the negative climate, optimism prevails in low-cost airlines. Eurowings, a subsidiary of Lufthansa, as well as the British Easyjet are planninga number of flights similar to the pre-pandemic era, for the summer of 2022 . The German travelers TUI and DER Touristik are also optimistic, expecting a return to normalcy more or less soon and planning accordingly. In the same vein is the Irish airline Ryanair, which expects an increase in the number of passengers above the levels of 2019. The promising low-cost airline Wizz also sees a positive outlook next year. The commercial director of the Hungarian company, George Michalopoulos, of Greek origin, appears optimistic despite the problems caused by the Omicron mutation: “I think that societies will learn to live with the pandemic.”