Preparing for the rebound
Overall, the past twelve months have been devastating – leaving all us battered, desperately trying to figure out the unfathomable fog of directives coming from the government where at some point in time, things got muddled that it was like taking advise on losing weight from an obese dietician. All this whilst battling to financially stay afloat, rather than sink in failure.
Humans have been genetically programmed over 200,000 years of evolution to be companionable — to gather, to socialize and to share ideas and experiences. That genetic necessity isn’t going away. It may have been squashed by the coronavirus, but that’s all the more reason to think we are primed for a remarkable rejuvenescence of pent-up energy.
Although despondent at not been able to move around freely, the pandemic has forced some people to make the best of being grounded, where this difficult period keeps reminding them that travel is important for boosting mental health and personal awareness. A study done some years ago by Cornell, showed that looking forward to travel substantially increased happiness, far more than anticipating buying material goods. Planning a trip triggers high levels of energy, attention and focus.
Millions of people desperately seek to regain that lost freedom to travel. Imagine then, the unleashing of this huge amount of energy - when planning trips will once again become joyful. Hold that thought though. Be warned, the release of this pent-up energy is not going to happen immediately nor overnight.
Initially, given the license to travel, people will choose trips, that not only provides the freedom and excitement to travel, but is worth the effort and risk – especially when making a journey to an overseas destination. Whilst the rollout of vaccines will no doubt gather momentum, by no means will the risk of catching the virus go away soon. With that in mind, certain pre-requisites will prevail.
Foremost of all, the point-to-point route, where travelers will fly to a single location and return home after the vacation will be the one most encouraged by those in charge of tourism. Unlike in the pre-COVID-19 period, travelling for social prestige and taking flight motivated by the Instagram craze will be far less, as will trips that combine multiple countries on the journey to the ultimate destination.
Long haul travel will mean longer vacations, where travelers will want to spend time in the destination and hopefully squeeze in some local experiences. Long haul will also be pricy. On the other-hand getting back to office need not be a rush. Done properly, a longer stay combining ‘bleasure’ is a distinct possibility. When more and more people are working remotely from home, why not spend a few more days working from the hotel you just spent your holidays in?
If there’s one thing I’ve learnt after over four decades of working in the hospitality industry – particularly during the near ‘30 year-war on terrorism’ in Sri Lanka: is that no matter how bad it gets - the world will continue to rotate, the sun will rise and a new day is born. The challenge was how we used that new day to frame a better tomorrow. And we did exactly that with energy, determination and by staying positive.
The rebound will come…slowly yet surely. As the freedom to travel accelerates it will be back to usual business. As an hotelier remarked “I still believe travel can be the biggest distributor of wealth the world has ever seen”.
Shafeek Wahab – Editor, Hospitality Sri Lanka, Consultant, Trainer, Ex-Hotelier
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