While the rollout of coronavirus vaccines has given hope to the beleaguered travel industry,
Axel Hefer, CEO of Trivago, an online search and price comparison site for hotels, anticipates at least another quarter, if not multiple years, before the sector fully recovers.
"We do think that the first quarter will stay very difficult for the travel industry," Hefer told Cheddar. "The situation is still very serious. It feels more under control, and the vaccine rollout is obviously contributing to that, but the number of infections and also the death toll is still very high in the U.S. and also in many European markets."
He added that next summer in the Northern Hemisphere could offer a reprieve — as those holed up during the pandemic go on their first vacations in over a year — but even when travel does begin to return to normal levels, it could look very different than before COVID-19.
Trends, such as travelers taking more domestic flights or visiting nearby international neighbors that had begun in 2020, are likely to continue next year, Hefer noted. It will also likely take time for travelers' expectations to adjust from new normals that emerged during the pandemic.
"The quarantine requirements that are currently implemented in many, many countries will not be forgotten, so it will take some time to normalize," he said.
For travel businesses, Hefer said preparing for a smaller market that could last years is key to survival.
"Even with a positive outlook for 2021, it will not be anywhere close to 2019, and that obviously has some implications on the size of your business and also on your operations," he said.
As for when travel will return to pre-pandemic levels, Hefer stressed that different parts of the industry will recover at different rates. Business travel, for instance, might never reach its former heights, as more work is done remotely, while local travel could bounce back as early as next year.
Whether a company survives this uneven transition depends largely on its strength going into the crisis and how they have operated during it, he added.
"Not every airline will make it through the crisis. Not every travel business will make it through the crisis."
A big-screen adaptation of the anime “Chainsaw Man” has topped the North American box office, beating a Springsteen biopic and “Black Phone 2.” The movie earned $17.25 million in the U.S. and Canada this weekend. “Black Phone 2” fell to second place with $13 million. Two new releases, the rom-com “Regretting You” and “Springsteen — Deliver Me From Nowhere,” earned $12.85 million and $9.1 million, respectively. “Chainsaw Man – The Movie: Reze Arc” is based on the manga series about a demon hunter. It's another win for Sony-owned Crunchyroll, which also released a “Demon Slayer” film last month that debuted to a record $70 million.
The Federal Aviation Administration says flights departing for Los Angeles International Airport were halted briefly due to a staffing shortage at a Southern California air traffic facility. The FAA issued a temporary ground stop at one of the world’s busiest airports on Sunday morning soon after U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy predicted that travelers would see more flights delayed as the nation’s air traffic controllers work without pay during the federal government shutdown. The hold on planes taking off for LAX lasted an hour and 45 minutes and didn't appear to cause continued problems. The FAA said staffing shortages also delayed planes headed to Washington, Chicago and Newark, New Jersey on Sunday.
Boeing workers at three Midwest plants where military aircraft and weapons are developed have voted to reject the company’s latest contract offer and to continue a strike that started almost three months ago. The strike by about 3,200 machinists at the plants in the Missouri cities of St. Louis and St. Charles, and in Mascoutah, Illinois, is smaller in scale than a walkout last year by 33,000 Boeing workers who assemble commercial jetliners. The president of the International Association of Machinists says Sunday's outcome shows Boeing hasn't adequately addressed wages and retirement benefits. Boeing says Sunday's vote was close with 51% of union members opposing the revised offer.
The stunning indictment that led to the arrest of more than 30 people — including Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier and other NBA figures — has drawn new scrutiny of the booming business of sports betting in the U.S. The multibillion-dollar industry has made it easy for sports fans — and even some players — to wager on everything from the outcome of games to that of a single play with just a few taps of a cellphone. But regulating the rapidly-growing industry has proven to be a challenge. Professional sports leagues’ own role in promoting gambling has also raised eyebrows.
Tesla, the car company run by Elon Musk, reported Wednesday that it sold more vehicles in the past three months after boycotts hit hard earlier this year, but profits still fell sharply. Third-quarter earnings fell to $1.4 billion, from $2.2 billion a year earlier. Excluding charges, per share profit of 50 cents came in below analysts' estimate. Tesla shares fell 3.5% in after-hours trading. Musk said the company's robotaxi service, which is available in Austin, Texas, and San Francisco, will roll out to as many as 10 other metro areas by the end of the year.
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