At Tourplan, our clients are talking to us about what they need to do to ramp up, and be well placed to respond to increasing demand in 2022.
There are some key considerations to keep in mind for pandemic-shaped travel in 2022.
Lack of staff – sadly, many people have lost their jobs or have left the industry due to COVID-19. What this means is that tour operators must now deal with what will be an increase in demand with a reduced workforce. That’s why it’s so important to have the right technology on board – solutions that help streamline processes and boost automation.
Cancellation policies – these must be well defined and easy to understand. Because new variants keep popping up, border restrictions are constantly changing. People are only going to book travel now if the cancellation policy is clearly spelt out in black and white and they know exactly what to expect if their plans are disrupted. For tour operators, this means having a very firm grip on your suppliers’ – hotels, transport etc. – cancellation policies, so that you can make them crystal clear to your clients and tailor your own to align with them.
Vaccine passports – these are a key reason that travel in 2022 looks set to reignite. Fully vaccinated travellers will be able to enter certain countries without restrictions, and it’s important to know what those countries are and what their vaccination policies involve. Providing your clients with accurate information about vaccine passports and where they must be used means they won’t encounter any surprises during their trip.
Because we know a lot more about COVID-19 now than we did when it first struck, and with the advent of vaccines, tourism in 2022 is looking a great deal more positive – in fact, it’s the beginning of a new era in the tourism industry.
Watch this space
At Tourplan, we’re continually innovating, and we have some exciting client-focused developments ready to launch early next year. For the past few months, we’ve been working on a new feature that’s set to lift our customer service to a whole new level, so make sure you check back with us for updates.
Go to https://www.tourplan.com/blog/goodbye-21-hello-22/ for more.
