Coronavirus and Travel

Got the pandemic under control? That remains a key factor for Chinese tourists to go abroad, a new sentiment survey from Dragon Trail shows. None of that "living-with-the-virus" approach that some Asian destinations are starting to embrace.

As Covid continues to show, timing is everything when reopening for tourism. Will the elected party get behind Canada's travel industry until the uncertainty fades, or will more businesses collapse?

Tour operators are understandably expressing no desire to launch Covid-related tours while the pandemic is still ongoing. But as themes like death and tragedy already feature prominently in numerous trips, history suggests some tour operators will eventually include visits to Covid memorials in their offerings.

A cooled-off construction market for hotels in the U.S. gives owners an opportunity to charge even higher rates during the recovery thanks to less supply in the market. But Marriott needs to show shareholders signs of growth. Hello, Asia and Europe.

David Kong took Best Western into a new era of multiple brands across a variety of price points. The next CEO has to take the reins and throttle the company out of an uncertain pandemic recovery.

Be wary of everybody’s favorite word at the moment: pent-up demand. Your typical leisure traveler can book a trip and pack their bag in minutes, but companies will keep employees on a tight leash for years to come.

No, the Trump International Hotel in Washington isn’t worth $400 million. But there are a lot of investors waiting on the sidelines to park capital in just about any available asset — a classic example of the laws of supply and demand.

It is hard to be optimistic about fall hotel performance for companies like Marriott and Hilton — unless the absence of business travel is somehow offset by higher-than-expected leisure travel.

Major hotel companies like Marriott and Hilton want franchisees to think bigger is better in terms of signing a branding deal. Standard International wants to show you can stay independent and punch above your weight — but having cool factor and financial backup still helps.

This is good news for those who like what Bill Gates as a partial owner has done to help Four Seasons grow in recent years. But there is still a lot of uncertainty around when the market will be back to the kind of conditions that help put heads in beds in one of these glitzy hotels.