Coronavirus Impact Mounts on Meetings Sector

While the spread of the coronavirus has had serious consequences for travel across Asia, it also deeply affects the meetings sector as planners and organizations have to make smart decisions about future events.

We have an insightful look this week from Skift’s EventMB editor Julius Solaris into the potential ramifications of the coronavirus crisis on the global meetings and events sector.

We also have the latest on trends in hotel pricing and the efforts by destinations around the world to become more sustainable.

If you have any feedback about the newsletter or news tips, feel free to reach out via email at [email protected] or tweet @sheivach.

— Andrew Sheivachman, Senior Enterprise Editor

The Future of Events and Meetings

Asian Destinations Reel From China’s Outbound Travel Ban: For a string of Asian destinations, China is by far the number one market, so the outbound travel ban that became effective Monday there has shaken tourism businesses even though they know it is for the good.

Travel Megatrends 2020: Tourism’s New Competitive Advantage Is Protecting Destinations: Responding to the burden that tourism can bring requires more than tacking on the idea of management to tourism boards’ activities; it requires a paradigm shift in how destinations operate. That shift is under way.

Short-Term Rentals a Key Factor in Sluggish Hotel Rate Growth: U.S. hoteliers are finding their pricing options constrained because of an influx of both short-term rental supply during peak periods, and because of hotel construction. Hoteliers may decide to get into the short-term rental market or not, but they increasingly have to take it into account when fine-tuning pricing strategies.

Around the Industry

Major Travel Agencies Are on a Consolidation and Expansion Fast Track: Travel agencies are poised for expansion, but the major challenge is finding travel advisors to fill new positions. Acquiring agencies and enticing newcomers to join the industry are ways around it.

The Story of Oyo’s Troubles Is the Story of Modern India: What’s happening with Oyo cannot be looked at separately from the modern Indian milieu that gave birth to it, and in which it operates. Oyo now needs to rise above that legacy and bring in the global business practices that ensure it survives and thrives in the future.

Japanese Prime Minister Doesn’t Expect Virus to Affect Tokyo Olympics: Japan has doubled down on using international sporting events like the forthcoming Olympic Games as a way to turbocharge its tourism industry. It’s clear from the prime minister’s remarks that it doesn’t expect the coronavirus to get in the way of that.

The Best of EventMB

The Best of EventMB is our newest section, giving you a look into key content from EventMB, whether it be reports, articles, or resources for planners. EventMB joined the Skift family in September and is the largest online media resource for trends, technology, innovation, and education in the events industry.

5 Scenarios of the Coronavirus Impact on Events: The coronavirus is a growing global public health threat that will have ramifications throughout the events industry.

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Senior Enterprise Editor Andrew Sheivachman [[email protected]] curates the Skift Meetings Innovation Report. Skift emails the newsletter every Wednesday.

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