One-third of travelers said they felt comfortable traveling again after a year and a half in a pandemic, according to a recent survey by global strategic and management consulting firm Oliver Wyman.
Although international and domestic travel has begun to grow, preventive measures and other restrictions imposed to stop the spread of the virus by many governments continue to make tourists cautious in some countries. Oliver Wyman's recent study was conducted in nine major markets: Italy, France, Germany, Spain and the non-EU territories, the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, Canada and China.
"A quarter to a third of passengers are still uncomfortable interacting with other people. However, the number represents an improvement of almost 20% compared to October 2020, when almost half of the respondents stated that they do not plan to travel ".
The survey shows that respondents in France were more interested in traveling again, participants in other countries, such as Germany, Spain and Italy, showed less interest. "The outlook for travel is much brighter, but it is still affected by the slow pace of vaccinations in some geographical areas, concerns about new variants of COVID-19 and unequal government policies on travel restrictions."
Business travel no longer attracts as many European travelers compared to pre-pandemic periods.
In terms of leisure travel, an increase in short-haul travel is expected, as study participants pointed out that it is still uncomfortable to fly international long distances (25%) compared to domestic flights (15%). In addition, the study showed that last-minute bookings could become another trend.
The report emphasized that safety and health measures have become and will continue to be an important part that travelers take into account when planning their holiday. The current pandemic situation has made travelers think twice when planning to travel abroad, pushing them to travel more locally and take precautionary measures into account to stay safe.
According to the study, the most important measure remains the rule of social distance, while a third of respondents indicated that they want to have an empty seat next to them. In addition, respondents also want masks to be mandatory. Many countries around the world are reopening their borders for vaccinated travelers. However, only a quarter of travelers in the survey consider vaccination status to be important.