A new report looks like bad news for tourism and the business travel industry. My travel notebook also has good news for tourism in Las Vegas, Vancouver, San Francisco, Toronto, Bali, and Halifax. I also have news about Emerald Cruises in the Caribbean.
BUSINESS TRAVEL: WILL IT EVER RECOVER?
A company called Morning Consult surveyed more than 16,000 people across the Americas, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific region between October 2021 and summer 2022. It found that two in five Americans who used to travel for work three times a year say they will NEVER take another business trip.
People’s intentions can change, but that’s still a startling figure. The numbers were even higher in some places, as 59% of French business travellers and 55% of British business travellers said they’ll never travel for business again.
A report at Skift.com today states that U.S. companies are cutting their budgets for trips by almost a quarter (24%).
That, too, is bad news for hotels that rely on business travellers to fill their rooms, and on destinations such as Toronto and Vancouver, which rely on business travel to supplement leisure visits.
“Cities like Toronto rely heavily on business travel for the vibrancy and vitality of its visitor economy,” said Andrew Weir, Executive Vice President, Destination Development, for Destination Toronto. “The disruption to business travel as we knew it has been plainly obvious and we are now seeing a range of factors pull in different directions, yet to stabilize into a new normal.
“The return of business travel is closely tied to the return to office and city centres, which has indeed been slow to materialize. As more companies and employees return to offices, the need and opportunity to travel for business will follow, though will certainly be forever altered to some degree. Similarly, remote working arrangements suppress some forms of business travel, like flying to meet a client. But they also give rise to new forms of business travel like a remote team coming together for a quarterly meeting,” Weir said.
“We have seen over the course of the pandemic the power of new technologies; but we have also seen their limitations. While video calls may serve the need for sharing content, the fact remains that creative collaboration and networking are forever at the heart of business and depend on face-to-face interaction,” he said.
“TIAO is aware of the challenges in the recovery of the business travel market in Ontario,” the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario said in an email. “In addition to supporting room capacity, business travellers spend four times as much as leisure travellers.
“This underscores the need for all levels of government to work with industry to support the return of business travellers and events by elevating the capacity of Ontario destinations to compete for major business events, supporting the capacity of mid-sized destinations to deliver high-quality hybrid events, and removing all remaining barriers to travel.”
Destination marketing officials for big cities tell me that smaller meetings have bounced back nicely, but that a lot of big conferences aren’t being held, at least not yet. That’s not only bad for hotels and convention centres, but for their workers.
The hospitality industry in Canada employs a great deal of women and new immigrants, as well as students.
Vancouver’s Stanley Park in autumn. JIM BYERS PHOTO
HAPPIEST PLACES TO VISIT 2022: BALI FIRST, VANCOUVER AND SAN FRANCISCO MAKE WORLD TOP 10
Club Med has done a study of the world’s top ten destinations to make a traveller happy. They looked at a variety of issues, including spas and crime & safety.
Vancouver was seventh in the world and third in North America. Toronto was 8th in North America and Halifax ninth.
Here’s the world top 10:
1. Bali
2. Las Vegas
3. New Orleans
4. Barcelona
5. Amsterdam
6. Budapest
7. Vancouver
8. San Francisco
9. Dubai
10. Rio de Janeiro
And here’s the top 10 for North American destinations:
1. Las Vegas
2. New Orleans
3. Vancouver
4. San Francisco
5. Washington, D.C.
6. Los Angeles
7. Portland, Oregon
8. Toronto
9. Halifax
10. Nashville
And here’s the top 10 for Europe:
1. Barcelona
2. Amsterdam
3. Budapest
4. Porto
5. Marseille
6. Madrid
7. Dublin
8. London
9. Valencia
10. Milan
The Emerald Azzurra cruise ship.
BOUTIQUE SHIPS IN THE CARIBBEAN WITH EMERALD CRUISES
Emerald Cruises recently announced that their 100 passenger, oceangoing yachts Emerald Azzurra and soon-to-launch Emerald Sakara will spend the 2023 and 2024 winter seasons in the warm waters of the Caribbean and Central America. This is great news for Canadian travellers seeking beautiful beaches, turquoise water ideal for swimming and snorkelling and rich culture in a sunny destination that doesn’t require a long, overseas flight. And with nearly one million people of Caribbean descent residing in Canada, and more than two million Canadians travelling to Caribbean nations annually, these new itineraries are sure to draw attention.
To sweeten the deal, Emerald Cruises is offering guests a complimentary premium drinks package on all new bookings of a 2023 or 2024 Caribbean or Central American sailing when booked by September 30, 2022. The premium drinks package represents a value of $1,100 CAD per couple based on an eight-day cruise. Guests should reference the code DRINKC22 when booking to receive their drinks package.
Ten distinct itineraries in this beautiful region range from eight to 15 days and will take guests to picture-perfect islands in the Grenadines, Virgin Islands, and West Indies, as well as ports in Puerto Rico, Panama, Costa Rica and Colombia. Those looking for an extended holiday will want to consider the grand 15-day Discover the Caribbean In Depth between San Juan, Puerto Rico and St. John’s, Antigua with ports of call in the US and British Virgin Islands, St. Barts, St. Kitts, Martinique, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, St. Lucia, and Guadeloupe. Or, visit the charming, historical city of Cartagena, Colombia and travel through the historic and dramatic Panama Canal before exploring the picturesque islands and towns of the Caribbean on the 11-day Southern Caribbean Delights & Panama Canal. A variety of shorter, eight-day sailings are also available, along with an alternate 15-day itinerary.
A first for yacht cruising, Emerald Azzurra features just 50 luxuriously appointed suites, more than 88% of them with balconies, with more space per guest than similar vessels of her size. The yacht also features a large infinity pool, spa with infrared sauna, gym and marina platform complete with SEABOBs, paddleboards and snorkelling equipment available for guests to enjoy. A fleet of the very latest in electronic bikes from Gocycle are also available on board, ideal for local village trips and active explorations.
