Understanding Travel and Tourism Following COVID-19
Download the full report at the end of this article.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the tourism industry has been effectively shut down around the globe. This has resulted in a deep and direct hit to airlines, hotels, tour operators, restaurants, and many other tourism-related businesses.
While we do not know the full extent of the impact that COVID-19 will have, we do know that its effects will be felt long after the travel bans and social distancing measures are removed.
There are many questions that tourism operators are going to be facing in the coming months, to which many of the answers to are unknown. There is no question that travel will be impacted for months, if not for years to come. Our goal is to redefine travel and tourism and to develop an in-depth understanding of the attitudes, needs, motivations, and behaviours of travellers in what may be a “new normal.”
This study was designed to provide a comprehensive look at the current and future state of travel and tourism in Canada to provide the industry with the insights and recommendations needed to help achieve success moving forward.
OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The research results in this report are designed to provide an understanding of the current mindset of travellers in a world following COVID-19. Specifically, the goals of this research were to address the following questions:
- How were 2020 travel plans impacted by COVID-19?
- Will travellers be more inclined to stay closer to home and engage in more driving tourism, or will travellers be comfortable taking domestic and international flights to further destinations?
- What level of comfort do travellers report when considering different modes of transportation?
- What forms of accommodations will be in the competitive set of potential travellers?
Methodology
This web survey was conducted using computer-assisted web interviewing (CAWI) technology from June 9 to 21, 2020, among 2,031 Canadians, 18 years of age or older, randomly recruited from the LEO online panel.
No margin of error can be associated with a non-probability sample (web panel in this case). However, for comparative purposes, a probability sample of 2,031 respondents would have a margin of error of ±2.51%, 19 times out of 20.