Good news for the global tourism sector is coming from the European Travel Commission study, which interviewed almost 6 thousand people across Europe. According to the results, 78% of the respondents are currently planning to travel in Europe as soon as travel bans are lifted. Their worries, as shown by similar studies, revolve around safety issues, flexible policies and air travel, still perceived as one of the less safe ways to travel in the post-pandemic era. Read more
Volagratis.com, a popular Italian travel booking platform, analyzed the main trends of the travel industry in 2021. Staycation and workation will be two very important trends, as they will combine a traditional holiday with smart working and a short trip, not too far from home: both have become priorities for the post-2020 average traveller. Slow travel will also play an important part, as the length of each stay will be slightly longer (as seen by Volagratis.com actual booking requests) and will give more time to enjoy the destination. Two other important trends to keep in mind are the growth of family tourism and last minute bookings, to avoid postponements or cancellations. Read more
According to the Travel Trend Report by VRBO, Flexcations will be a growing trend in the upcoming year. Defined as a holiday that features all contemporary needs (smart working and online learning), flexcations are considered as a feasible practice in 2021 by 78% of the over 8 thousand families interviewed by Vrbo. The flexcation trend will have a positive impact on the tourism sector: not only will they restart the usual travel routes, but they will also lengthen the stay, as they will not interfere as much as a traditional holiday with work or with school. Read more
To keep the Christmas spirit alive in a time of travel restrictions, Visit Finland launched a special campaign featuring its most popular citizen: Santa Claus. Thanks to “Say it with Santa”, people will be able to send Santa a message and have it read in first person, so it can be shared with those involved. On December 11th Santa Claus will also take over Visit Finland’s social media accounts and will have a private chat with few lucky participants. He will, of course, be broadcasting from its house in Rovaniemi. Read more
The Maldives won the title of World’s Leading Destination during the virtual Grand Final event of the World Travel Awards 2020. This is the first time ever that the Maldives have won this award in the most prestigious category of the World Travel Awards. Read more
To promote business travel in the post-pandemic world and help small businesses overcome the costs of transfers, Marriott International launched a special Marriott Bonvoy program for its European, Middle-Eastern and African market. Small businesses will now benefit from special discounts and no anticipated payments. Over 950 hotels of 24 different brands in 75 countries joined the initiative. Read more
Four Seasons will launch in 2021 its luxury program “Four Seasons Private Jet”, where subscribers will travel across the world on a redesigned luxury aircraft. Among the selected destinations for the 2022 season, which has already been disclosed, we find a tour of Africa (the pyramids, the Serengeti, Mauritius, Rwanda, Zambia and South Africa), the Pacific Ocean (Hawaii, Bora Bora, Sydney, Bali, Thailand) and South America (including Miami, Mexico City, Easter Island). Read more
Airlines and airports are introducing new quick swabs and Covid tests to restart the airline travel industry despite the travel restrictions they underwent this last year. Alitalia and Aeroporti di Roma introduced a Covid Free flight between Rome Fiumicino and Milan Linate, using quick Covid tests before boarding, and now also Delta will use them (starting mid-December) on its flights between Italy and the U.S. (Rome – NY and Atlanta – Rome), as the screening proved to be successful and effective. In the meantime, Lufthansa introduced similar measures on its daily flights between Munich and Hamburg, with passengers that can have a free test and are moved on another flight (without costs or repercussions) shall they decline to do it. Qantas, on the other hand, is planning on making their international passengers do the Covid vaccine (once available) if they want to board their flights. United, Lufthansa, Swiss, Virgin, Jet Blue and Iag are thinking about introducing a “health passport”, that shows if the passenger has already been tested or vaccinated. Read more
Thanks to its new fleet of Airbus A321XLR, Jet Blue is now ready to connect the U.S. and Western Europe. London will be their first and most important route, as it has the highest number of requests, but other interesting destinations, especially during the summer season, are Spain, Greece and Italy. This last one, in particular, is said to have tremendous potential when it comes to passenger traffic. Read more
Gardaland Resort, the resort of the popular theme-park Gardaland, has introduced a pet-friendly offer that will debut in the 2021 season. Dogs under 30kg will be welcome in the hotel with a special “Welcome Cookie” and will be regularly listed as guests if they have their canine passport. Small dogs were already welcome inside the park but can now stay overnight with their owners. Read more
The World’s Best 50 Bars 2020, that every year chooses the best places to visit for a drink around the world, stated that the best bar in the world is the Connaught Bar in London, thanks to its innovative mixology approach to modern bartending. The two head mixologists are two Italians: Ago Perrone and Giorgio Bargiani. Read more
What if a destination could be promoted through video games, especially in this time of travel restrictions? Ghost of Tsushima and Yakuza Like a Dragon, two games just launched for every major gaming console, are certainly up to the task: their depiction of Japan’s past and present is so lively that, according to critics, their gameplay takes second place and leaves room to the setting. Could that be the start of a new trend that unites games and travel? Read more
China has a World Record elevator: it’s the Bailong Sky Lift, which is at the same time the highest outdoor elevator, the highest two-floor elevator and the fastest elevator over passenger capability. Situated in the Zhangjiajie National Park, in the Hunan region, the elevator is over 300m high and carries every day between 8.000 and 14.000 passengers per day. The rock wall on which it’s built inspired James Cameron for its blockbuster movie Avatar. Read more
