On Aug. 30, the EU announced the removal of the U.S. from its safe travel list in a move that has sent tour operators scrambling to cancel, downsize, reschedule or consolidate already-booked trips.
According to a Sept. 13 survey from the U.S. Tour Operators Association (USTOA) — in which 88% of respondents had reported operating tours or packaged itineraries to Europe — 68% of tour operator members are describing a decrease in demand for new bookings when compared to the weeks leading up to the announcement.
Three-fourths of companies operating in Europe say clients have rebooked or postponed their 2021 vacations to a later date, while 60% have reacted by opting to cancel their trips.
The new policy has created confusion for travelers, “along with hesitation and doubts about [travelers’] ability to proceed with European vacation plans this year,” said Terry Dale, president and CEO of USTOA.
In fact, despite the EU’s announcement, many American clients can still move forward with their vacations as planned, he said.
“Vaccinated Americans, for the most part, can move forward with their travel plans to Europe, and many of our members have been operating travel programs and tours successfully in Europe for months,” Dale said.
But it’s not all bad news: 79% of tour operators have reported that they have guests who are proceeding with 2021 Europe trips as planned, a statistic that Dale finds “encouraging.” What’s more, 19% of USTOA members have seen an increase in bookings to non-European destinations as a result of the change.
Vaccinated Americans, for the most part, can move forward with their travel plans to Europe, and many of our members have been operating travel programs and tours successfully in Europe for months.
When asked to select which scenarios applied to their businesses, 45% of USTOA members report no changes in operations, while 47% report canceling departures; 42% are downsizing groups; and 37% are operating fewer departures by consolidating or canceling trips.
When it comes to their overall book of business, one-third of respondents have noted a domino effect for trips that aren’t located in Europe. Eighty-eight percent of operators are seeing passengers postpone their non-Europe trips as a result of the announcement, and 25% are reporting that clients are canceling trips to other destinations.
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United States Tour Operators Association
