Carnival Cruise Lines saw a 200 percent year-over-year spike in sales recently when the company announced it will set sail again this August with massive discounts for travelers willing to give it a try.
However, the glut of travelers signing on may not mean all vacationers are willing to look past the glut of problems the industry faced at the outset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Rafat Ali, founder and CEO Skift, a travel industry media and research company.
One of the largest initial clusters was centered on a Princess Cruises ship docked in Japan. After that, ships full of passengers were stranded at sea as country after country refused to let them dock for fear infected passengers would spread the disease within their borders.
Ali told Cheddar that the real test for the industry will come from those travelers who are not ride-or-die fans of cruises.
"I think the public sentiment, beyond just the cruisers, will matter a lot. Meaning if there's a huge backlash against cruises from people who don't cruise, but can make a lot of noise, I think the cruise industry will probably have to rethink in terms of when they reopen," said Ali. "August is what they have said. It depends on where the world is then."
However, he acknowledges that cruises may have an opportunity to draw in a younger consumer now, despite generally appealing to an older crowd.
"I think they are more keen -- the vouchers and the offers that they have, in terms of how cheap it is, make them prone to August to going on those," he said.
Skift recently published a report about the impact on the hotel industry after crises like SARS and 9/11 and, like others in the travel industry, found that a coordinated effort will be key.
"I think the biggest thing that we've learned, which hadn't happened until now, is a coordinated response to the pandemic. I think that a coordinated response to the reopenings, which there are hopeful signs that it is happening, I think is the biggest thing that will help the hotel industry, the travel industry, and the airline industry," said Ali.
So far, though, there are mixed expectations about where travelers will feel safest when they hit the road.
"The people who were predisposed to Airbnb will continue to be predisposed," he said. "I think short-term rentals in remote settings, where you will travel with your own hygiene and cleaning products, is the one traveler change you will definitely see."
However, many hotels have adopted technology, such as kiosks, to make visitors' stay safer and more convenient. Ali also says he believes that hotels will implement other technology that will allow visitors and staff to social distance.
"I think mobile keys, which hadn't been adopted as much as you would have thought so far, I think those have become a real possibility. I think back of the house changes, in terms of how to manage people that do the cleaning and operations will change as well," he said.
The Rev. Al Sharpton is set to lead a protest march on Wall Street to urge corporate America to resist the Trump administration’s campaign to roll back diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. The New York civil rights leader will join clergy, labor and community leaders Thursday in a demonstration through Manhattan’s Financial District that’s timed with the anniversary of the Civil Rights-era March on Washington in 1963. Sharpton called DEI the “civil rights fight of our generation." He and other Black leaders have called for boycotting American retailers that scaled backed policies and programs aimed at bolstering diversity and reducing discrimination in their ranks.
President Donald Trump's administration last month awarded a $1.2 billion contract to build and operate what's expected to become the nation’s largest immigration detention complex to a tiny Virginia firm with no experience running correction facilities.
Chipmaker Nvidia is poised to release a quarterly report that could provide a better sense of whether the stock market has been riding an overhyped artificial intelligence bubble or is being propelled by a technological boom that’s still gathering momentum.
Cracker Barrel said late Tuesday it’s returning to its old logo after critics — including President Donald Trump — protested the company’s plan to modernize.
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
