London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Friday, Jul 31, 2026

What will travel look like after coronavirus?

What will travel look like after coronavirus?

Coronavirus has devastated the travel industry, but experts believe it will bounce back again. Here are eight things travelers are likely to see once the industry is able to rev its engines in the direction of recovery.

As movement around the world grows more and more restricted, it's hard to imagine what travel will look like when it eventually ramps back up.

The staggering global scale of the coronavirus pandemic makes it especially devastating, but the travel industry has rebounded from past crises and experts believe it will bounce back again.

"People haven't changed in that they still want to go places, but they're going to necessarily be a lot more cautious about what they do," said Adam Blake, a professor of economics and head of research in the Department of Tourism and Hospitality at Bournemouth University in the United Kingdom.

"And they're going to need not just persuading that it is safe to travel, but they'll need to see actual physical changes made to make travel safer."

For now, we don't know when or how the pandemic will pass. But once the public health crisis improves, travelers will also need to see steep drops in prices to get them moving again, analysts say.

Here are eight things travelers are likely to see once the industry is able to rev its engines in the direction of recovery.


Cruises will be very cheap. But it might not matter for newcomers



Travelers who are comfortable with cruising will find very low prices as cruise lines restart service, said Christopher Anderson, professor of business at Cornell University's Hotel School in Ithaca, New York.


The challenge will be in attracting new customers to cruise travel, "which will be essential to survival," he said, after global headlines about coronavirus outbreaks on ships, travel restrictions and denied ports of call.


Anderson suggested that reconfiguring some of the new ships that are still under construction with bigger staterooms and less passenger density might be a way to attract new customers. Reducing buffet food service and leaning more toward a la carte dining across rate tiers might be another way to reassure travelers who are skeptical about cruise travel, he said.


Cleanliness will be addressed - a lot
"Everyone, whether it's cruise, lodging or hotels, are going to have to change how they monitor and clean the environment that consumers interact with and communicate that back to guests in order to increase their comfort level," Anderson said.


Jan Freitag, senior vice president of Lodging Insights for hospitality analysis firm STR, underlined sanitation as well, referencing "new, visible measures" needed to show how clean properties are.


Whether that means hand sanitizers everywhere or regularly disinfecting hard surfaces, "there will be a clearly communicated regimen to let the customers know, 'here's what we're doing to keep you safe,'" Freitag said.

Hotel rates in the US declined by 30% the week of March 21, according to Freitag, and "rates will definitely go down before they come back up."


Historically, in times of great uncertainty such as in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks or after the end of the recession in 2009, it has taken twice as long for room rates to rebound than it did for them to drop to their lowest point, Freitag said.


He doesn't anticipate the collapse of any segments of the US hotel industry, but there will be lodging disruption that in many cases will be invisible to guests. Hotels may change hands behind the scenes but remain operational and under the same brand.


Travelers may feel safer in hotels than vacation rentals
Anderson says one "saving grace" for hotels may be traveler discomfort with alternative lodging options such as Airbnb and other vacation rental sites because those properties may struggle to communicate and standardize rigorous cleaning standards.


"I'm going to want the safety and security of established cleaning protocols that I get from an established lodging provider," Anderson said, so he anticipates a negative impact in the short term for Airbnb-type rentals.

Look for lower airfares and emptier planes
People will be more comfortable traveling by air if planes are less full, says Anderson.


"If we really want to turn this around, airlines have to be flying with empty middle seats and prices dramatically lower than what we had last summer," he said.


Several carriers last week announced plans to eliminate some food and beverage service and middle seat assignments to cut costs and reduce interaction on board.


Anderson sees business travel rebounding first, followed by domestic leisure travel. Trans-oceanic travel is likely to lag, he said.


Business travel may spur recovery for airlines
While many businesses may get more comfortable with conducting meetings virtually, Anderson expects the desire for in-person dealings will help spur airlines' recovery.


"I believe people need interaction, and it is possible a prolonged pause in regular business dealings may jump start air travel as people look to get back to business and create opportunities," he said.


Air travelers will have more booking flexibility - for a while
Anderson expects that airlines -- which extended a series of waivers and flexible rebooking options as the outbreak advanced -- will continue to be less stringent with cancellation and change fees -- for a period of time.


"As we get into 2021, we'll be back to the old way I imagine," he said.


Increased sustainability is a possible windfall
A silver lining for travel in this crisis? The opportunity to address issues that were top-of-mind before coronavirus arrived, said travel broadcaster Peter Greenberg in a recent video.

Overtourism, sustainable travel and the environment were among travel's most talked-about topics before the spread of coronavirus.


"We can get back to this in a much more responsible and ethical way when this crisis ends," Greenberg said.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Andy Burnham has Announces Plans to Redistribute Income Tax Revenue to English Mayors
Early-Release Scheme Faces Fresh Scrutiny as Reoffending and Prison Recalls Rise
Police Phone Checks Followed Report on Murder of MI5 Agent Inside Sinn Féin
Archbishop of Canterbury Reaffirms £100 Million Reparative Justice Fund During Ghana Visit
Charities Allege French Police Used Tear Gas Against Channel Migrants
Norwegian Teenager Convicted Over Iran-Linked Murder Plot in Britain
Christian Organisations File Charity Complaints Against Amnesty International UK
Ofgem Tightens Grid Connection Rules for New Data Centres
FTSE 100 Reaches Record High Despite Global Technology Sell-Off
Millions of UK Households Urged to Check Eligibility for Winter Energy Discount
Labour Restores Parliamentary Whips to Diane Abbott and Joani Reid
UK Supreme Court to Hear Challenge Over Palestine Action Ban
UK Commits More Than £8.4 Billion to Dreadnought Nuclear Submarine Programme
England Declares Severe Drought as Wildfire Burns Near Sizewell Nuclear Site
Bank of England Holds Interest Rates at 3.75% as Middle East Tensions Fuel Inflation Risks
Drought Status Extended Across All of Wales as Heat and Dry Weather Deepen Environmental Strain
Record-Low Danube Exposes Probable Mammoth Remains in Bulgaria
UK Business Confidence Climbs to Four-Month High
Greater Manchester Gains Expanded Powers Under Regional Funding Reforms
UK Supreme Court to Hear Appeal Over Palestine Action Terror Ban
Shell's Quarterly Profit Doubles to Nearly $10 Billion on Higher Energy Prices
UK Government Removes VAT From Household Electricity Bills
Exceptional Drought Grips Half of England as Wildfire Threatens Sizewell
Bank of England Holds Interest Rates at 3.75% as Inflation Risks Persist
US Says It Has Carried Out Heavy Strikes on Iran After Attempted Attacks on Its Forces
The chief executive of the popular gaming company laid off many employees and his pay rose to 38 million dollars
UK Employment Holds Steady as Wage Growth Remains Moderate
England to Introduce Artificial Intelligence into Secondary School Curriculum
Wales Launches £1.2 Billion Industrial Regeneration Programme
High Court Upholds UK Digital Surveillance Framework
Northern Ireland Reaches Budget Agreement on Infrastructure and Public Sector Pay
Home Office Expands Digital Border Checks Nationwide
UK Approves Major North Sea Wind and Carbon Capture Project
The World's Most Terrifying Smartphone: Recording, Documenting, and Reporting to the Regime
Scotland Approves Major Renewable Energy Expansion
UK and United States Sign AI and Semiconductor Cooperation Pact
UK Treasury Tightens Fiscal Controls After Gilt Market Volatility
Bank of England Holds Interest Rates at 4.5%
UK Unveils £10 Billion NHS Funding Overhaul and Workforce Reform
The AI User Nightmare: Private Claude Conversations Leaked to the Internet
UK: Former Football Association Leaders Call for World Cup Boycott Over FIFA Privatization Plan
Forbidden Love: China severs millions from their virtual partners
Over 24 Hours in the Air: Qantas Airbus Completes Record-Breaking Test Flight
Prince Harry Faces Significant Legal Costs After Insurance Shortfall
FirstGroup Sells Rail Software Business to Tracsis for £48 Million
Victoria and Albert Museum Staff Vote for Strike Action
Norwegian Teenager Convicted Over Contract Killing Plot in Britain
Royal Mail Raises Bulk Mailing Prices by 30%
Immigration Remains Britain's Top Public Concern, Ipsos Survey Finds
Prime Minister Says Social Care Reform Must Precede Assisted Dying Legislation
×