Global Travel Reopening Tracker

A survey conducted by the Vacationer revealed that only 12.52% of respondents felt comfortable with immediate international travel. As more and more travelers refrain from visiting international destinations in view of the recent coronavirus crisis, domestic tourism is set to gain a massive boost in popularity. This will foreseeably lead to the development of local tourist destinations and experiences in the short term.

Domestic tourism is also set to gain in the long term. While this sudden influx of domestic travelers will eventually decline as countries ease travel restrictions and open international borders, destinations and experiences can continue to expect domestic tourist numbers that well eclipse pre-COVID-19 numbers.

Outdoor activities like hiking, camping, biking and trekking have become increasingly popular in the post-COVID era. Tracking the popularity of these activities in Google's searches in the past months shows a dramatic rise in its search volumes – trending at figures greater than pre-COVID times.

As more and more people opt for road trips and staycations closer to home, the demand for car and RV rentals is expected to rise significantly. For example, we can see that despite travel being hit the hardest, companies like Outdoorsy (RV rental) and Hipcamp (camping experiences) have been seeing an exceptional steady surge in the number of people visiting their websites.

The onset of the pandemic has resulted in remote work becoming increasingly popular. While only 7% of Americans worked from home before COVID-19, the number has now increased to 62%. And it looks like the trend is here to stay!

With remote work becoming the norm, the concept of 'workations' will gain momentum. Instead of going on multiple short trips over the weekends, travelers will now opt for a month-long workation to properties that are equipped to facilitate uninterrupted work.

This new trend will force hotel chains and travel rental properties to innovate. As more and more people begin planning longer holidays, hotels and properties that offer better pricing for long term stays and amenities like super-fast WiFi can look to attract customers and travelers.

The recent worldwide travel ban has inspired a surge in the popularity of new virtual travel experiences all over the world. Globetrender recently reported that the 'Remote Tourism' initiative by the Faroe Islands saw more than 7,000 tourists taking part in their virtual experience.

These immersive experiences come with many advantages like attractive prices and immediate consumption – right from your couch. And they become especially relevant in the post-COVID era where traveling is limited from one room to the other.

While it is unlikely that virtual tourism will ever displace traditional tourism, the pandemic has definitely acted as a stepping stone for these virtual experiences and have accelerated their growth, allowing them to make a mark in the travel industry.

Attractions around the world are reopening at an accelerated rate, implementing new rules of entry – mandatory masks and social distancing along with limited access. While many have already opened their doors to the public, even more attractions are working towards opening in the coming months.

The primary concern in the mind of those willing to travel again will be safety. Other concerns like affordability in lieu of the economic repercussions of the pandemic are also expected to play a major role, along with quality of the experience.

Thus, exceptional, affordable and safe experiences will become the norm. Be it historical monuments, heritage centers or individual travel platforms, they will all be forced to come up with relevant systems, practices and methods to adapt to the changing times.

Pre-pandemic, on any given day at the Eiffel Tower, you would see a serpentine queue at the entrance with tourists waiting up to 2 hours to access the elevators.

In the post-pandemic era, however, waiting in hour-long queues will simply not be a feasible option. Which is why world-famous monuments and attractions that lured in thousands of tourists every day are now implementing new crowd-management strategies.

Placing a cap on the number of visitors allowed and introducing timed entry are the two main steps taken by most attractions. As a result, the overall travel experience has become more safe, efficient and convenient for all visitors.

Over 500 prominent tourist attractions have reopened since the pandemic shut the world down. 45% of of all tourist attractions that have reopened have mandated the purchase of online tickets and closed their offline ticket counters completely.

Pre-pandemic, more than 85% of all experiences were sold offline at the counter or via a concierge/travel agency. However, with the pressing need for safety measures like social distancing, this is no longer a feasible option. Thus, the offline travel industry has now been forced to innovate due to the pandemic.

In the long term, even after the world has recovered from the pandemic, this trend is expected to continue. While the offline travel industry will gain back some of its lost momentum, it will not return to pre-COVID levels. Online travel marketplaces and other OTAs who have the infrastructure developed will come out the winners.