The summer travel season is underway in Europe and the US as temperatures rise and travel conditions ease. But instead of the sun, sand and surf of the past, this time people are focusing more on inflation, rising fuel costs and flight cancellations.
According to Sprout Social, a Social media analytics firm, conversations on Twitter about travel dropped 75 percent from April to May, while discussions related to gas prices and travel -- half of which were negative -- climbed 680 percent.
Hundreds of flights have been cancelled and delayed at major European airport hubs every day for the past two weeks. Staffing shortages, strikes and strong demand pose challenges for airlines, airports and travel companies.
The perfect Storm
Since April, novel Coronavirus travel restrictions have been lifted in various parts of Europe. On Friday, Biden also announced the lifting of the Novel Coronavirus monitoring requirement for international air travel, as more people decide to travel.
Soaring demand is colliding with staff shortages, and major European airports have faced cancellations or delays over the past two weeks:
At London's Heathrow and Amsterdam's Schiphol, passengers had to wait in security queues for more than six hours.
Passengers wait in line to check in at the departure hall at Heathrow Terminal 5 in London, England, Monday, June 13, 2022. Long queues have become a feature of airports this year. Photo: Bloomberg)
At Paris Charles de Gaulle airport, a quarter of flights were cancelled last Thursday and two runways closed, with unions calling for wider industrial action in July.
More than 360 flights were cancelled in and out of Italian airports last week after a 24-hour strike by air traffic controllers and flight crews.
Scandinavian airlines pilots are also threatening to strike from the end of June.
Lufthansa, Germany's biggest airline, recently cancelled about 900 short-haul domestic and European flights in July because of staff shortages.
Outside Europe, more than 2,800 flights were canceled and 20,644 delayed for the Memorial Day holiday. Qantas and Low-cost Jetstar are asking office staff to help with ground work.
The travel industry called it a "perfect storm."
Willie Walsh, director general of the International Air Transport Association, an aviation trade group, said the government's change in coronavirus policy had created a lot of uncertainty, The travel industry has had little time to prepare for a restart after two years of stagnation.
Airports and airlines have laid off tens of thousands of workers during the pandemic, and many of them are reluctant to return to their old jobs because of long hours and low pay. But recruiting and training new staff, especially pilots and airport security, takes time, and many positions are unlikely to be filled in time for the summer travel rush.
It was also the main trigger for strikes, as workers demanded better working conditions and higher wages to help ease the burden of soaring inflation.
"I think it will take 12 to 18 months for the industry to get back to full capacity." John Holland-Kaye, chief executive of Heathrow airport.
High prices will hardly reduce travel fever
Despite the inconvenience, tourists are still enthusiastic, and many media outlets even offer "travel guides" to passengers.
The guide is a comprehensive guide to flight recommendations, travel dates, airport departure or delay probabilities and even private airline booking guides. Travel experts also advise passengers to arrive three to four hours before their scheduled flights to allow plenty of time for long lines; Passengers flying from the U.S. to Europe are advised to take direct flights and have several backup flights; Don't check your luggage. Travel light. Travel by train or ferry if necessary.
In addition, many countries in the U.S. and Europe face the risk of inflation and global worries about energy shortages, sanctions and rising living costs. Against this backdrop, demand for travel is rising rather than falling.
Anthony Capuano, chief executive of Marriott International, said the company, which operates in nearly 140 countries based on its website, was now seeing strong demand not only from leisure travelers, but also from group and business travelers.
Intrepid Travel is a Melbourne-based Travel company specialising in small group adventures and holidays around the world. James Thornton, its chief executive, said that "travel bookings have more than doubled in spite of rising costs."
The Tripadvisor Travel Index, released in May, also showed that Singaporeans were reluctant to cancel their summer travel plans in the face of rising costs. Nearly 40 percent more people are planning to travel this summer than last year, although 77 percent said they are "extremely" or "very" concerned about rising costs.
According to travel website The Vacationer, 208 million Americans will travel this summer. More than half (55 percent) of Americans are traveling for the next big holiday, The Fourth of July, an increase of 8 percent from last year.
Zeta Global, a marketing technology company, said americans' intentions to travel internationally rose in May, with trips to Asia, Europe and South America up more than 200 percent from the previous month. Rising costs are hurting travel spending this summer, with 74 percent of U.S. consumers actively looking for ways to save money on travel.
"More and more people are adjusting their plans to accommodate price increases and additional fees, rather than cancelling [travel plans] entirely." "Said Eric Bamberger, senior vice president of hospitality at Zeta Global.
Consequences of lax
Despite the strong travel demand generated by the relaxation of COVID-19 response strategies, there are also negative impacts for travelers and travel companies.
Vlitas of Travel services company Internova Travel Group said he hoped the US would not lift the coronavirus testing requirement until July because tour operators were not yet able to cope with the demand for Travel this month. It will only exacerbate the problems we face now and hurt the recovery.
Travel industry representatives and labor unions say the Biden administration's decision to lift the novel Coronavirus negative test requirement will only fuel a further surge in demand.
According to a recent study by booking website Skyscanner, many Americans who put off international travel plans throughout the pandemic are looking for travel opportunities this summer. According to the study, there was a 600% increase in searches for budget flights and a 200% increase in searches for how to book flights on that day compared to June 2021.
But June is not really the peak season, the traditional summer season doesn't peak until July and August.
The risk of infection is also increasing at crowded airports.
Jessica Hubler, 53, a composer who returned to Philadelphia from a two-week vacation in Portugal, tested positive for the coronavirus on Monday. She is convinced she caught the virus at Lisbon airport, which, like most European transport hubs, has abandoned the mask ban.
"I waited an hour to check in, then stood in the customs line for two hours, hundreds of people didn't maintain social distancing or wear masks, and then spent another hour at the gate." She said.
"Everyone is happy to go on holiday again, but people have forgotten the Novel Coronavirus and the government doesn't care because they need to make up for lost tourism revenue." "If we don't fix this mess, we're going to find ourselves in another public health emergency," Hubler said.