Travel has come to a standstill. In 2020, the number of airline passengers was expected to reach 4.72bn, according to the International Air Transport Association. Now, with airlines grounding their planes and air traffic in vast decline, passenger numbers on European airlines are projected to be 46% below those of 2019. For travel and hospitality brands – who are arguably bearing the brunt of the Covid-19 pandemic – the future looks bleak.
However, as The Future Laboratory's senior futures analyst Victoria Buchanan notes, this global crisis has come at a surprisingly fitting time. After all, it’s the dawn of a new decade, and consumers and brands are in a state of reflection, introspection and contemplation. And while it may be challenging for those in the travel and hospitality sector to see this pandemic as a much-needed societal reset, it’s important that they do.
For the foreseeable future, recreational travel has been plucked from consumer consciousness. Operators, understandably, are caught in a state of apprehension and bracing for huge economic loss. Many are faced with an option to unashamedly market fantasy trips of a lifetime – now hauntingly dystopian in their approach – or scale back on brand communications.
Some are taking the crisis as an opportunity to voice a hopeful message, such as VisitPortugal’s calming and instructive film Can’t Skip Hope. Launched just as Europe fell into lockdown, the campaign is optimistic, identifying this period as a time to reset, re-centre and recalibrate mankind. ‘Nature, landscapes, beaches and monuments aren’t going anywhere,’ states the voiceover, which was recorded remotely using a smartphone. ‘They’ll still be there, waiting for a better time to be lived.’
