New stats on the benefit of a road trip and being outdoors. New, daytime uses for hotels as work spaces. A chocolate museum for a popular European destination. And a potential Hawai’i hotel bubble for quarantined arrivals. My Future of Travel blog for July 29.
Road Trips and the Outdoors: Not Only Fun But Good For You
Canadians are exploring RV’s for great travel experiences this year.
This doesn’t surprise someone who loves the outdoors and cherishes a great road trip.
A company called Outdoorsy, which I talked about recently in a story I wrote about RV’s being popular this year, a huge majority of North Americans (94%)) say they’re happier and healthier when spending time outdoors.
“We had always believed that time spent outdoors has a positive effect on an individual’s well-being, but with this survey we learned more about the wellness benefits attributed to time spent outdoors with family,” said Jen Young, Outdoorsy’s Co-founder and CMO.
Outdoorsy’s Road to Wellness survey, which included 1,400 North Americans, found that:
- The open road is a welcome relief: 71% of respondents who had to cancel their summer travel plans are now considering alternative vacation options, such as a road trip, as a result of COVID-19
- Air travel is still a hassle: 65% of parents said they consider it easier to drive with children than to fly, with 75% of respondents noting they would describe their last road trip as a “much needed escape” and would plan to take one again soon
- Remote workers have caught the travel bug: Work From Home types are 2.5 times more likely to say they would take more road trips if they had access to an RV, with 72% of respondents reporting they are planning to take more road trips as a result of widespread work-from-home policies due to COVID-19
- Parents find kids are more appreciative on road trips: Of the parents surveyed, 93% said they feel more bonded with their children when on a road trip, with 75% adding that their kids say “thank you” more often when on vacation.
- Vanlife sees no age: Among the demographics surveyed, Millennials are a little more than two times more likely than any other generation to spend their COVID-related stimulus funds on a road trip this year, while Boomers are 1.8 times more likely to opt out of plane travel this summer due to COVID-19.
Which makes this a good time (what a segueway!) to mention my book again. It’s called “Ontario Escapes: 19 Great Places to Visit Right Now,” and it’s perfect for an Ontario road-trip. The book, which is a steal at just $4.99 and is available only on Apple Books for folks with an Apple device, focuses on quiet spots around the province where you can get out and enjoy yourself. I have a couple big city offerings, but most of the chapters are centred on natural places and smaller communities.
As well, 17 of the 19 chapters are about places within a four-hour drive of Toronto. Most are within two or three hours of the city. So, get up and buy the book, already!
Hotels Switching to Day Use: But Not What You’re Thinking
The Intercontinental Hotel Toronto Yorkville. PHOTO COURTESY IHG
A friend of mine, Heather Greenwood-Davis, has a great story in the Globe and Mail today about how some Canadian hotels are encouraging day use. But not for lunch-time trysts.
Greenwood-Davis writes that hotels are offering up daytime rooms as a place for people to get away and get some work done without the kids underfoot, or, I suppose, without husbands hanging around asking what’s for lunch.
Michelle Dias, who handles media relations for Intercontinental Hotel Group in Canada, says about 20 of the chain’s hotels in Canada remain closed, while others are only averaging around 30% occupancy.
The company launched the “Work from Hotel” package recently to try to build up day usage at under-utilized hotels. It’s currently being offered at the Intercontinental Toronto, Intercontinental Toronto Yorkville and Intercontinental Montreal properties.
“Customers pay a day rate (starting at $99 at the Intercontinental Montreal) for use of a spacious and recently renovated room that has been cleaned according to the property’s enhanced protocols,” Greenwood-Davis wrote. “The fee covers an eight-hour period that falls within a normal working day. And while restaurants and dining spaces remain off limits, room service, delivered by a masked and gloved employee, is available.”
A Sweet Museum is Coming to Switzerland
The LIndt Museum will open in Zurich in September.
I wrote a story about Switzerland being open to Canadians for today’s edition of TravelPulse Canada, where I serve as senior editorial director.
Switzerland Tourism held a Zoom chat on Wednesday to talk about how the country is now open for Canadians to visit.
Switzerland Tourism Director for Canada Pascal Prinz said Switzerland began welcoming Canadians again on July 20, and that there’s no need for a quarantine upon arrival. Canadians returning home, however, are still supposed to self-isolate for 14 days.
Prinz said a recent study by The Deep Knowledge Group found that Switzerland and Canada are two of the safest countries to travel to.
“Clean is the new sexy, and Switzerland has a reputation for being very clean,” Prinz noted.
“We have come through the crisis and the government has handled it well,” he said. “Infrastructure is open again and you can travel, you can experience the country.”
“Switzerland is a safe country, it is a clean country, and Canadians always have a great time.”
It’s always been one of my favourite parts of Europe, with magnificent mountains, perfect wooden chalets with cheery red geraniums, glittering lakes and cool cities such as Zurich and Geneva.
There’s also, of course, Swiss wine and Swiss cheese and Swiss chocolate. Speaking of which, the Lindt chocolate company will open a Lindt Chocolate Museum in Switzerland in September. How sweet is that?
A Hawai’i Hotel Bubble?
The Travaasa Hana is secluded and beautiful; a great spot on Maui.
Here’s another interesting hotel item. Since the state of Hawai’i is still requiring arriving guests from outside the state to quarantine for 14 days, some hotels are toying with the idea of creating 14-day packages. Guests would have to stay on the property, but if there’s a beach and a pool and the grounds are reasonably extensive it could still be a decent holiday.
“[It’s] another idea we’ve been tossing out there,” Hawaii County Managing Director Roy Takemoto said in a story posted at Forbes.com. “They would be allowed to stay at selected resorts and the resorts would control where the visitors would be allowed to range.”
It’s not the same as being able to drive the road to Hana or take in the sights of Kauai by helicopter, but I can think of a couple of hotels I could live at for two weeks, including the Napili Kai Beach Resort, the Fairmont Kea Lani and Travaasa Hana, all on Maui. The Four Seasons Hualalei on Hawai’i Big Island has a terrific on-site golf course and a lagoon filled with tropical fish, as well as a beach and “regular” swimming pools, so that would be pretty good, too.
