Munnmunn Marwah, COO, India & UAE – Think Strawberries in an interaction with Travel Trade Insider (TTI) shared her views on a wide range of subjects, ranging from recovery of outbound tourism to travel trends expected in future.
Marwah with more than 25 years of varied travel industry experience with hotels, airlines, cruise liners, technology and representation business has successfully developed partnerships and accelerated growth for multiple tourism boards and global attractions. The following are excerpts from the interview.
Q. How do you view the current tourism scenario in India? Do you see a long road to recovery for outbound tourism?
A. This is one of the most challenging times for the travel and hospitality industry and as a result, the demand for travel has been impacted severely. It is not possible to set any defined timelines for outbound tourism as there has been a drastic shift in the traveller’s behaviour.
Having said that, the tourism sector is quickly picking up and destinations are increasingly welcoming tourists from India now that Covid positivity numbers in the country have significantly declined. While countries are continuing to fight the virus they are simultaneously looking to rebuild and re-emerge from the pandemic.
The vaccination drive will create a surge in travel demand, with many flights starting to operate in full capacity to the countries like Dubai, Maldives and some parts of Europe and other parts of Asia as well by the end of July 2021. Fully vaccinated passengers would be allowed to travel globally which will prove to be an extremely promising step towards the recovery of outbound tourism.
Q. Once the pandemic is over, what kind of travel trends are you expecting?
A. It has been an extremely tough year for the travel industry with lockdown after lockdown, border restrictions and flight cancellations. Seeing the upward swing in travel demand, it is imminent that travellers will be spoilt for choice when restrictions fully ease.
Adventure: Travellers are looking for activities they couldn’t do during the pandemic. It feels like the collective sense of adventure has certainly been stymied by the pandemic. Travellers would be attracted to memorable, meaningful outdoor experiences.
Extended Vacations: Since people have been at home for prolonged periods, we can expect long-stay holidays to become more popular. Extended vacations are not simply visiting places but also experiencing them fully and immersing in the local flavour of the area.
Solo Travellers: People will now seek solitude in the form of solo travel experiences for self-discovery and will explore ways to enjoy “me time”.
Choosing less popular destinations: Health and hygiene will play a crucial role in establishing global travel and tourism trends. Travellers would prefer to visit less popular destinations that score high on safety and hygiene.
Q. What according to you tourism industry stakeholders need to do for surviving the present severe challenging period for the sector?
A. The pandemic has wiped clean many tourism businesses. A lot of them crashed during the period of no activity and were never able to get back up. The ones that remain standing are those that had a deep-rooted industry presence, loyal partnerships or were generally resilient enough to bear the impact. These businesses will be the flagbearers of recovery and shoulder the responsibility of instilling confidence among travellers by offering support, enhanced experiences, personalization and ensuring their safety.
Digitalization is extremely important and stakeholders will need to recalibrate their digital presence to remain relevant. This includes online booking platforms, social media, secure transactions and easy refunds.
Q. With India bracing itself for a possible third wave of the pandemic, do you fear travel sentiments are heading for worse even for the domestic tourism market?
The second wave hit us at a time when things were beginning to look promising and many countries were gaining stability. Compared to the first wave that was perceived as a global tragedy, the second wave shook our confidence as a country. We have been able to control the damage but the fear of a third wave is certainly palpable and very real. The upside is that we are now conditioned and prepared for the type of destruction it may cause.
It is now a ‘known’ enemy and we have developed the tools to face it and fight it and, hopefully, soon we will have the tools to completely eradicate it. Till that happens, we will have to be extremely vigilant and remain prepared for the unexpected. However, it is premature to be distressed right now. At this stage, all I can say is that as long as people continue to adhere to protocols and are responsible for themselves as well as the safety of others, chances are that the impact would most likely be absorbed.