Archive for category: Coronavirus

Americans are feeling somewhat more hopeful about the pandemic and travel, but the recent surge has diminished some potential trip volume that may have occurred. An approved vaccine continues to be very promising in bringing a segment of travelers back and increasing travel overall. In the meanwhile, most still want to see people masked in travel ads.

IMPORTANT: These findings are brought to you from our independent research, which is not sponsored, conducted, or influenced by any advertising or marketing agency. Every week since March 15th, Destination Analysts has surveyed 1,200+ American travelers about their thoughts, feelings, perceptions and behaviors surrounding travel in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic and explored a variety of topics. The findings presented below represent data collected November 6th-November 8th.

Key Findings to Know:

• While Americans overwhelmingly remain in an elevated state of anxiety, fewer feel the coronavirus situation is going to get worse in the next month, the perceptions of travel activities as safe rebounded, and excitement for a potential getaway, openness to travel inspiration and the ability of discounts to motivate travel all improved.
• Nearly 6-in-10 Americans have returned to a readiness state of mind around travel.
• A pandemic-high 36.5% of American travelers say they would be happy—or very happy—to see an ad promoting tourism to the place where they live. However, the desire to see people wearing masks in all travel ads has remained strong.
• The current surge is not without its impact: 60.2% say that the recent increases in COVID-19 cases around the country have made them less likely to travel in the next three months and 41.8% report that they have cancelled or postponed an upcoming leisure trip because of the worsening of the pandemic in the U.S.
• Nevertheless, eight months into the pandemic, Americans do exhibit signs of adapting towards regaining normalcy, needing fewer circumstances to feel comfortable returning to their pre-COVID lifestyle.
• Since September, there has been a 5% decrease in the percent that affirm they would take a COVID-19 vaccine that is developed this year or in early 2021 (39.2%), but the length of time Americans say they prefer to wait to take an approved vaccine has lessened.
• If a COVID-19 vaccine was required before traveling, nearly 60% of American travelers said this would make air travel feel safer and nearly 50% said they this would make cruise travel feel safer. In addition, 36.7% of American travelers say the availability of an official document confirming COVID-19 inoculation would make them more—or much more—likely to travel in the next 12 months.
• When asked about the COVID-related protocols they feel are absolutely necessary to feel comfortable attending special events and festivals, desires are similar to retail businesses, in that they want masking, frequent cleaning and limited crowd sizes to ensure social distancing is possible.
• Don’t forget to register to attend a full update of these findings on Tuesday, November 10th at 11:00am ET.

Americans spent much of the last week awaiting election results and watching COVID-19 continue to set new records in our country–hitting the highest daily number of new cases since the pandemic began. While Americans overwhelmingly remain in an elevated state of anxiety, they may be feeling slightly more hopeful. This week, somewhat fewer feel the coronavirus situation is going to get worse in the next month (58.7% down from 60.9%). After worsening for two weeks, the perceptions of travel activities as safe rebounded back to pandemic-period low levels. Excitement for a potential getaway and openness to travel inspiration improved, as did the ability of discounts and price cuts to motivate travel. Less Americans agree that they wouldn’t be able to fully enjoy it if they traveled right now, dropping 5% in the last two weeks (60.1% to 55.1%). Thus nearly 6-in-10 Americans have returned to a readiness state of mind around travel.

With their desire for travel inspiration returning and their comfort going out for leisure in their own communities growing, now 36.5% of American travelers say they would be happy—or very happy—to see an ad promoting tourism to the place where they live. This exceeds the percent that would be unhappy by over 8% and represents a pandemic-period record high. However, given the vast majority of Americans who have high degrees of concern about personally or friends/family contracting coronavirus, their desire to see people wearing masks in travel ads has remained strong. When asked how they would advise advertising agencies about the use of masks in travel advertisements, nearly half said everyone in the ad should wear a mask. Another quarter says it depends, but people should be wearing them when appropriate. Just 14.5% advised that no one should wear masks in travel ads.

Given the pandemic’s heavy influence on travel sentiment and behavior, the current surge is not without its impact. The percent with high degrees of concern about the virus’ impact on their personal finances and the greater economy increased this week. And the surge looks like it has diminished the potential volume of travel that could have occurred. Looking at the percent of Americans who have traveled since the onset of the pandemic in March, it appears that still only around half are traveling. Now 60.2% say that the recent increases in COVID-19 cases around the country have made them less likely to travel in the next three months. Unfortunately, 41.8% report that they have cancelled or postponed an upcoming leisure trip because of the worsening of the pandemic in the U.S.

Nevertheless, eight months into the pandemic, Americans do exhibit signs of adapting towards regaining normalcy. When asked what they need to feel comfortable going back to their normal (or near-normal) lifestyle, notably fewer need a number of circumstances to be in place compared to than in the first phase of the pandemic in April.

However, the one area nearly 47% of Americans have remained steadfast in needing to return to their normal lifestyle is a COVID-19 vaccine–although the percent agreeing they need a vaccine to do any travel has been on the decline for the last four weeks (38.2%). Since September, there has been a 5% decrease in the percent that affirm they would take a vaccine that is developed this year or in early 2021 (39.2%), but the length of time Americans say they prefer to wait to take an approved vaccine has lessened, so that 30% feel they now need less than three months. When vaccines become available, they continue to be very promising in bringing a segment of travelers back and increasing travel overall. If a COVID-19 vaccine was required before traveling, nearly 60% of American travelers said this would make air travel feel safer and nearly 50% said they this would make cruise travel feel safer. In addition, 36.7% of American travelers say the availability of an official document confirming COVID-19 inoculation would make them more—or much more—likely to travel in the next 12 months.

Prior to the pandemic, nearly one-third of American travelers took trips specifically to attend a special event or festival, and these travelers are likely hoping for the return/recovery of these live events. When asked about the COVID-related protocols they feel are absolutely necessary to feel comfortable attending such events, desires are similar to retail businesses, in that they want masking, frequent cleaning and limited crowd sizes to ensure social distancing is possible.

A complimentary report of these key findings is available for you to download and share.

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You can register for our online presentation of these findings Tuesday at 11:00am EST.

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We appreciate your support of this research from our small but mighty team of devoted tourism researchers. If you would like further and deeper insights from the complete study, you can learn more here. Please consider donating or purchasing to support this research.

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To make sure you receive notifications of our latest findings, you can sign up here.

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If you need shareable graphics, content for presentations, video presentations and more, please visit our COVID-19 Insights Media page here.

Deck the Halls! The 2020 holiday shopping season is upon us. How will the retail sector fare in these unprecedented times? We researched American retail behavior as well as feelings regarding shopping during the pandemic. The latest findings from Destination Analysts’ Coronavirus Travel Sentiment Index Study indicate that in-person shopping is perceived as a relatively safe activity, with nearly half of Americans who consider it either “safe” or “very safe” (47.5%). Nevertheless, 8.4% state that they will shop for holiday gifts exclusively in-person, while 31.6% say they will only shop online for holiday gifts this year. When it comes to the absolutely necessary safety measures Americans require to feel comfortable shopping in a retail store, the top two are face masks required for all customers (68.8%) and staff (63.6%). Highlighting an opportunity for retailers, 46.8 percent of online-only holiday shoppers reported that they could potentially be convinced to go gift shopping in a brick-and-mortar store if stores improve their COVID-19 safety protocols.

As part of our weekly webinar presenting insights from our Coronavirus Travel Sentiment Index Study, Destination Analysts’ Senior Research Director, Myha Gallagher, interviewed a panel of retail professionals who shared their understanding of consumer behaviors and what they foresee for the short and long term.

You can watch the video of the discussion here, or continue reading for 5 takeaways that emerged from this insightful panel discussion.
 
– The current situation of retailers varies by sector. Customer confidence and merchandise sales are slowly improving for most retailers thanks to their local followers and loyal customers. Nevertheless, the situation remains largely challenging for most retailers due to inventory expenses and quickly pivoting investments. The leisure and outdoor sector, however, has been experiencing an exponential increase in sales. As Keri Hanson of Theisen Supply Inc. explains, “These types of retailers have really benefited from that movement for a more outdoors lifestyle – sporting goods, home and garden. There is this whole trend, about getting a new smoker, getting a new grill, getting some patio heaters and hanging out with people in your backyard instead of a traditional tailgate. This sector has really seen a big growth.” For some sectors, the recovery will not be fast enough, especially for airport vendors and retail operators. As Rob Wigington, Executive Director of the Airport Restaurant & Retail Association, notes, “They are scrambling, trying to figure out how to serve the very few travelers that are coming through.” He elaborated by sharing that waiting out the pandemic and adjusting to new consumer needs appear to be the only options if Congress fails to pass a relief legislation for the aviation sector.

– Brick-and-mortar stores are primarily seeing local business, however there are indications that out-of-towners are returning to shop. With road-trips currently the most common type of travel, many retailers are welcoming visitors. According to Taylor Safford, President & CEO of PIER 39, “There are a lot of road trippers out there and we’re actually seeing a lot of people coming from the Central Valley, Sacramento, Los Angeles and San Diego in-state.” Similarly, Keri adds that the pandemic has contributed to a rise in consumers in the Midwest, “Traditionally about 10 to 15% are out-of-market, so out of our regional trade area. And we’ve definitely seen an uptick in that percentage, so closer to about 22%.”

– The upcoming holiday shopping season looks promising. As some restrictions were lifted, consumers are increasingly going to stores to shop. In addition to observing the desire to interact with people and have human contact, Lorenzo Perez of Everlane commented that “It’s about giving little gifts for the holiday season and something that’s affordable and our prices are very transparent. There’s a higher conversion rate these days, especially because shoppers are much more purposeful when they come in and they are purchasing more.” These purposeful shoppers also consolidate their trips during the pandemic, focusing on conducting all their purchases in a single trip this holiday season. When it comes to safety, especially on Black Friday, clear safety guidelines around mask-wearing and social distancing should be established to ensure consumer safety and confidence.

– Safety is key in attracting in-person holiday shoppers. Corresponding with our findings indicating that improved in-store safety protocols can sway 46.8 percent of online shoppers to shop in-person, Taylor recommends, “It is safety first when it comes to retail. People have to feel like they’re going to be able to have a safe encounter with the retailer. But they also clearly – and our numbers show this very strongly – people want to have fun. They are tired of being at home, they want to normalize their lives again to the degree that it’s safe to do so and so if you can create a space in your store, or in the appearance of your store location, so that it is enticing and skews to the safety factors, I think people will make a special trip to go and patronize your store.”

– Change is inevitable. Having a profound impact on every aspect of commerce as well as our personal happiness, COVID-19 poses a challenge when it comes to remaining positive and optimistic about the future. Rob says, “I think folks have learned a lot of lessons and are still adjusting and adapting. Everybody who operates any kind of retail or export business has had to make some major adjustments, trying to preserve cash and trying to cut costs. They’ve got to really focus on what you can sell the people. It’s a good opportunity.” Lorenzo believes that, “People do want to get out! I want to get out! I do think it will change and will evolve next year and it’ll be interesting to see how that happens and what other changes companies will have in store for the retail employees and customers.”

Believe it or not, Americans are now trudging into the eighth month of this pandemic. At times it feels impossible that we’ve been in this crisis for this long and yet simultaneously it also feels as if lifetimes (plural) have passed. However, as our new pandemic lives stretch on, some of us have felt more confident that we can safely navigate this new reality, and slowly Americans have started venturing outside the bubbles they call home. A large part of this is due to the shared human experience of COVID fatigue, but much more important driving forces are the new safety practices and procedures businesses have had to implement to make their customers feel safe.

One of the key industries that still has headway to make in convincing Americans it is safe enough to travel again is the airline industry. Although they have adopted new safety procedures such as allowing for social distancing at boarding gates, electrostatic cleaning of air cabins, HEPA air filtration and strict mask policies, only 1-in-5 American travelers have traveled by commercial airline since the start of the pandemic in March. Another safety practice airlines have implemented is limiting the number of passengers onboard by leaving middle seats empty. But come December 1st, Alaska, Delta, and Hawaiian will be the only airlines to continue this policy.

As one might expect, Americans are largely disapproving of this change. In fact, half of American travelers who expect to take a trip on a commercial plane sometime between now and 2022 disagree with airlines’ decision to no longer limit the number of passengers onboard (50.0%). In contrast, just over a quarter agree with this policy change (28.5%). Interestingly, Millennials were divided on this issue (38.4% agree, 38.8% disagree), while Boomers were overwhelmingly against it (16.2% agree, and 62.4% disagree).

The prospect of having a stranger sitting in the seat next to you while traveling on an airplane largely makes us uncomfortable. In fact, two-fifths expressed discomfort with this scenario (39.4%), and another one-fifth said it would be an absolute deal breaker (20.7%). Although it’s tough to say definitely how this will impact Americans’ likelihood to book air travel in the future, it does appear that at least some may hold out on booking those tickets until other changes (in either safety procedures or the prevalence of the virus) take place.

We can’t fault airlines for reversing their empty middle seat policies. Like the rest of us, their business has been severely impacted by the pandemic and they are doing what they can to keep their heads above water. So are there other means to get travelers to feel safe enough to fly again? In our Coronavirus Travel Sentiment Index Study fielded October 24th-26th, we asked if a commercial airline required all passengers to take and pass a COVID-19 test prior to boarding, how comfortable would that make travelers to take a flight? Half (50.7%) said it would make them comfortable or very comfortable.

So it does appear that a required COVID test could significantly increase travelers’ comfortability with flying, which in turn could translate into increased passenger loads. Increasing travelers’ safety perceptions around all elements of the travel journey, especially ones where they have to be in confined spaces with strangers, will be paramount to the industry’s recovery and with such a complex and long-lasting issue like COVID, we can not rest on our laurels. Our industry will no doubt rise to the challenge and one day (hopefully in the near future) this will all be a distant memory and an important lesson we all toast to on a full flight to our long awaited paradise vacation.

As we have seen at other points in the pandemic, the current increase in cases has heightened Americans’ concerns for their health and financial safety and adversely impacted feelings about travel—although there are signs that travel sentiment and behavior may not be as significantly impacted as during previous surges. Testing and social distancing look most promising for bringing air travel back faster, while strict masking policies are likeliest to bring resistant shoppers back to retail stores.

IMPORTANT:These findings are brought to you from our independent research, which is not sponsored, conducted or influenced by any advertising or marketing agency. Every week since March 15th, Destination Analysts has surveyed 1,200+ American travelers about their thoughts, feelings, perceptions and behaviors surrounding travel in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and explored a variety of topics. The findings presented below represent data collected October 23rd-25th.

Key Findings to Know:

• High concerns among American travelers about contracting the coronavirus and its impact on personal finances and the national economy rose this week, as numbers of cases soared across the U.S.
• As new infection records continued to be set in the U.S., Americans’ strong concerns about virus contraction and the pandemic’s impact on personal finances and the greater economy marched upwards again this week. Pessimism about the virus’ course in the U.S. is firmly back in a heightened period.
• The increased anxiety about the virus coincides with decreasing excitement levels about taking a getaway in the next month and openness to travel inspiration.
• Perceptions of travel activities as unsafe and the percent of Americans who agree they have lost their taste for travel for the time being ticked up this week.
• However, there are signs that travel may not be as significantly impacted as it was in previous surges during the pandemic. 35.1% of American travelers feel they have gained confidence in how to navigate the pandemic in the last three months. Americans are now actually exhibiting less agreement that they will avoid travel until the coronavirus situation is more resolved and their state of mind about travel readiness remained constant from last week.
• Three-quarters still have trips at least tentatively planned, and the joy travel brings remains ingrained. Nearly 60% of Americans agree that having a vacation scheduled in the next six months would make them feel there is something happy to look forward to.
• Air travel also looks to continue a measured recovery. Over 35% plan to travel by air in the next 6 months.
• Examining policies that may bring more Americans back to air travel sooner, comfort with airlines requiring a COVID-19 test prior to boarding increased to 50.7% from 43.2% just two weeks ago. However, social distancing continues to be important to a significant share of Americans when it comes to air travel.
• Well over 80% of American travelers plan to shop at a retail store at some point in the remainder of the year, although currently, relatively few plan to take a leisure trip specifically to shop for the holidays (6.7%).
• The health and safety protocols Americans most desire for the in-person retail experience include social distancing guidelines enforced and strict masking requirements, although required masking for patrons and staff is seen as absolutely required by those Americans who still perceive shopping as unsafe.
• Don’t forget to register to attend a full update of these findings, including a panel discussion with retail professionals about what to expect this season, on Tuesday, October 27th at 11:00am ET.

As new infection records continued to be set in the U.S., Americans’ strong concerns about virus contraction and the pandemic’s impact on personal finances and the greater economy marched upwards again this week. Pessimism about the virus’ course in the U.S. is firmly back in a heightened period, returning to levels last seen in July, during the virus’ summer surge.

As we have seen at other points in the pandemic, the increase in cases and thus concerns has adversely impacted feelings about travel, particularly in the near-term. The increased anxiety about the virus coincides with decreasing excitement levels about taking a getaway in the next month and openness to travel inspiration.

Although slightly, perceptions of travel activities as unsafe ticked up this week after a sustained period of decline. Similarly, the percent of Americans who agree they have lost their taste for travel for the time being also somewhat increased after holding stable for the last two months.

However, there are signs that travel may not be as significantly impacted as it was in previous surges during the pandemic. While half feel unchanged, 35.1% of American travelers feel they have gained confidence in how to navigate the pandemic in the last three months. Americans are now actually exhibiting less agreement that they will avoid travel until the coronavirus situation is more resolved (54.7%). Americans’ state of mind about travel readiness remained constant from last week (55.3%).

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Trips also continued to be anticipated and planned. Three-quarters still have trips at least tentatively planned. And the joy travel brings remains ingrained. Nearly 60% of Americans agree that having a vacation scheduled in the next six months would make them feel there is something happy to look forward to.

Air travel also looks to continue a measured recovery. Last week, the TSA screened 1 million daily passengers for the first time since March. Fully 20% of American travelers we surveyed this week reported traveling by air during the pandemic to date. Over 35% plan to travel by air in the next 6 months. Another 31.9% are pushing out to May or later in 2021 (although 18.0% say they won’t return to air travel until 2022). Examining policies that may bring more Americans back to air travel sooner, comfort with airlines requiring a COVID-19 test prior to boarding increased to 50.7% from 43.2% just two weeks ago. However, social distancing continues to be important to a significant share of Americans when it comes to air travel. Half are not in agreement with the major airlines returning to full passenger capacity and nearly 40% report they would be uncomfortable flying if the seat next to them was occupied by a stranger.

With shopping such a commonly planned trip activity and the holiday season upon us, our research this week also looked specifically at Americans’ retail behaviors and feelings about the in-person experience amidst the pandemic. Nearly all surveyed have shopped in-person at some kind of store (most commonly supermarkets) during the pandemic. The relatively strongest perceptions of safety were felt at specialty stores and the relatively least felt at big box stores. Well over 80% plan to shop at a retail store at some point in the remainder of the year, although currently, relatively few plan to take a leisure trip specifically to shop for the holidays (6.7%). Those who currently plan to only shop online for the holidays are evenly split on whether they could be convinced to shop in-person. The health and safety protocols Americans most desire for the in-person retail experience include social distancing guidelines enforced and strict masking requirements, although required masking for patrons and staff is seen as absolutely required by those Americans who still perceive shopping as unsafe.

A complimentary report of these key findings is available for you to download and share.

…

You can register for our online presentation of these findings Tuesday at 11:00am EST.

…

We appreciate your support of this research from our small but mighty team of devoted tourism researchers. If you would like further and deeper insights from the complete study, you can learn more here. Please consider donating or purchasing to support this research.

…

To make sure you receive notifications of our latest findings, you can sign up here.

…

If you need shareable graphics, content for presentations, video presentations and more, please visit our COVID-19 Insights Media page here.

During Destination Analysts’ industry update webinar on October 20th, Destination Analysts’ President & CEO Erin Francis-Cummings interviewed a panel of HR and meeting planner professionals, including Elaine Cameron, Global Senior Director of Human Resources at Munchkin, Inc.

Here are three insights that emerged about how HR views the return to business travel:

Employee health and safety must be top priority. As a global brand with offices located all over the world, travel was essential to normal business operations at Munchkin prior to the pandemic. However, employee travel is currently restricted to “business critical travel only.” One of the primary factors that HR is seeking for business travel to resume to normal levels is when employees feel safe to do so, which is gauged through employee surveys. Elaine predicts this sentiment will more fully return after a vaccine is available.
 

HR is currently responsible for business travel approval, and these trips must meet several criteria in order to be approved.
These are:

– The business meeting must be proven to meet corporate safety standards
– Travel can only be to or within destinations that do not have travel restrictions in place
– The business meeting must be deemed critical to business operations or goals (e.g. tactile client presentations)
 

While it may take time to fully return, business travel is still perceived as integral to success. With the upcoming cold season and tighter travel restrictions in Europe and beyond, Elaine predicted that the earliest business travel would regularly resume at Munchkin is April, although a readily available vaccine would accelerate the timeline. Yet business travel is seen as fundamental to company operations—especially when it comes to hiring new high-level executives and interacting with key clients—so HR and other executive management will be happy when employees can more easily get back on the road again.