We’re living through a volatile and unpredictable time that is changing every day, so business planning is tricky. Visualising what the future might look like may seem impossible, but we can piece together the clues in order to predict what the biggest shifts in travel and tourism could be, and how these trends might impact a hotel’s strategic planning.

This is a unique moment in history whereby every hotelier and restauranteur globally is going through one singular experience, after which the industry – and the world around it – will be a different place. We must use this to our advantage and not go back to ‘business as usual’.

This pause in operations offers a completely unique opportunity to rethink the way in which we operate as hoteliers and as an industry. Can we become more sustainable, resilient and responsible? Can we better understand guests, engage and energise staff, and foster a greater sense of brand culture? We now have the time to think rationally about these facets of our businesses and refine them – or completely overhaul them. Business owners can also capitalise on the unique opportunity to take lead in their industry or local market by demonstrating authority, creativity and innovation in the post-covid environment.

There will be a handful of key, irreversible changes, and a number of peripheral trends that will come to the fore post- pandemic. Hoteliers should anticipate a rise in domestic travel; examine their corporate purpose beyond profit and growth; diversify revenue streams; bring supply chains closer to home; actively contribute to the health and welfare of staff, communities and guests. These factors – many of which are key components of sustainable travel – were already creeping up on us, but we can no longer afford to ignore their importance.

We will all now travel with our basic health as a priority. We will be mindful of the wellbeing of fellow travellers, the communities we visit and the planet. As wildlife enters our towns and cities, dolphins return to Italy’s shorelines and the canals of Venice flow clear, we now have urgent and devastating proof of the impact of mass travel. As we look to reduce environmental impact and health risk posed by transit, people will travel less but demand more from each trip.

We’ll see an increased demand for quality over quantity – fewer flights, longer trips, better experiences. High volume travel will become a thing of the past as we are look towards a more thoughtful generation of travellers. The mass, middle market will be worst hit – those businesses with high turnover, cheap staff, zero hour contracts; essentially, those operating with a stack ‘em high, sell ‘em cheap model will struggle. These businesses are often the most damaging to people and the planet so I would quietly suggest that this is no bad thing.