COVID-19: Research, Fast Facts, Podcasts, Hotel Forecasts, Resources... 
Research Insights
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Who's not traveling and why?
October 2020The people who intend to travel only tell one side of the story.
Traveler attitude, intent and behavior
October 2020In the face of new hardships that come with COVID-19, more than half of travelers in nearly all markets say leisure travel is still an important piece of their lifestyle. But trip-planning and traveling, as well as shifting perceptions of transport, lodging, cruise and activities, become complex exercises in the wake of COVID-19 and require travelers to undertake new considerations.
What can past consumer data tell us in the time of COVID-19?
October 2020Consumer travel patterns can help to predict what travelers do next. Phocuswright's latest travel research report series provides a snapshot of consumer behavior and sentiment immediately before COVID-19 transformed the world.
7 key developments in China’s major segments
September 2020In China, travel increased with the lifting of local restrictions in March and April, and the government introduced discounting initiatives to stoke demand for travel as the public health situation improved. However, these efforts can only bring travel demand so far while the threat of the virus and economic uncertainty loom. Here are the key developments in China’s major segments: air, hotel &...
Travel continues to be central to people's lives
September 2020Throughout this pandemic, Phocuswright research has indicated that travel continues to be central to people's lives. A majority of the European and American travelers we surveyed recently say it's core to their identity.
2 key factors for traveling again
September 2020In the winding path to recovery, travel companies should be aware of two important factors for European travelers: flexibility and control.
The path to recovery in Travel's Next Era
September 2020Phocuswright’s primary research in five major European markets explores travelers’ sentiment, motivations and attitudes in a changing landscape, and offers pointers on what travel providers can do to encourage them to venture out. This full presentation is available to Phocuswright Europe Online 2020 attendees only.
Innovation Summit and Launch winners, plus highlights from week one of Phocuswright Europe Online 2020
September 2020Winners of the day include Iomob, Hotelmize and HalalBooking. Summary of week one of Phocuswright Europe Online 2020.
Size of the Japan travel market and 2020 outlook
August 2020Once the leader in regional online penetration, Japan now has the lowest online share of travel gross bookings among all major travel markets in APAC, including Australia/New Zealand, China and India. In 2020, online penetration is predicted to grow incrementally in Japan but will remain well below the 50% mark.
The two indicators for business travel to resume
August 2020When and how meetings and event travel can return in the U.S. is at the mercy of science, the country's ability to control the outbreak, and the lifting of government restrictions on permissible group size. Travelers assessing whether they will attend a meeting or event will look to government guidance and infection levels the most.
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COVID-19 resources for you
August 2020We're here to help you through this challenging period with analyst expertise, PhocusWire resources and the Phocuswright community of partners, brands and contributors. It's important to keep up-to-date on all of the news impacting the industry, so we’ve put together all of the resources we have.
Global air trends
August 2020In their efforts to stay afloat, airlines have taken drastic measures, including furloughs, buyouts and layoffs. And despite numerous countries opening up their borders, it is unclear when travelers will get over their apprehension and feel comfortable taking to the skies again.
InPhocus, Episode 20 - Looking to Russia for a different perspective
August 2020Guest Max Kraynov, CEO of Aviasales, touches on the different approach (both physically and in the psyche of many of its citizens) that Russia has taken to tackling the coronavirus. And, of course, how it relates back to travel and the recovery of the tourism sector in Russia.
Latin America: Gross bookings expected to decrease 59% overall
August 2020The coronavirus pandemic will put an end to any travel market recovery in 2020. Gross bookings are expected to decrease 59% overall in the region with each country suffering revenue declines ranging from 44-63%.
InPhocus, Episode 19 - People want to move again
August 2020In this episode of InPhocus we examine a new report from Phocuswright and 3Victors that goes into a lot of detail about where travelers are considering going to. It examines search queries by travelers in a number of countries and regions around the globe, giving some early indication as to what destinations are on their minds.
U.K. travel market outlook and key developments
July 2020U.K. total gross bookings in 2020 are expected to drop 55% to £22.6 billion. This Research Insights article highlights key developments and outlook for the remainder of the year.
Will super apps replace travel apps?
July 2020There is no question that super apps represent a potentially disruptive phenomenon to the travel industry. Travel companies have invested millions in their smartphone apps to promote and leverage the unique advantages of the mobile channel. But are these investments now in jeopardy, due to the emergence of super apps?
InPhocus, Episode 18 - Innovators are primed and ready
July 2020Despite the focus on recovery, there is a sense that the industry is listening and waiting to see what emerges. To discuss these areas of opportunity and how brands can take advantage, InPhocus talks to U.K.-based Charlotte Lamp Davies of A Bright Approach, a well-known consultant and advisor to a number of startups and established brands. Phocuswright's Charuta Fadnis and Mike Coletta are your...
The products and purchase habits that consumers will return to
July 2020Phocuswright’s latest U.S. consumer research on travel product consumption highlights the products and purchase habits that consumers will return to as travel restrictions are eased and travelers feel fully comfortable resuming their earlier leisure travel behavior.
InPhocus, Episode 17 - Destinations, it's over to you now
July 2020We spoke to destination management expert Doug Lansky in the first few weeks of the pandemic. With the Destination X series now paused as the industry attempts to get back on its feet (AKA "recovery mode"), we wanted to reflect with Lansky on how the series had been received and his hopes, three months on, for the future.
What recovery looks like in the French travel market
July 2020Despite the loosening of travel restrictions, the short-term outlook for the travel market in France remains poor, with gross revenue expected to fall by more than 52% in 2020, compared to 2019 figures.
InPhocus, Episode 16 - Tales with some optimism
July 2020Klaus Kohlmeyer of hotel tech vendor IDEAS set out to capture many of tales from hoteliers over the last few months. In the latest episode of InPhocus, we speak to him about that collection of interviews for his podcast, Unconstrained Conversations.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: Chicago
July 2020Like other cities that introduced strict lockdowns, the negative impact on revenue per available room (RevPAR) has been severe, especially for Chicago's city-center properties. Amidst some solid progress in stats such as Chicago's 90-day YoY RevPAR disruption forecast and demand/hotel occupancy, other areas - lack of group business, capacity restrictions, the unknown Phase 5 timeline, loan...
2020 outlook and sizing for the German travel market
July 2020For the summer season, Phocuswright expects that many of the main destinations will open their borders to receive German tourists.
InPhocus, Episode 15 - Racial diversity should be the challenge we accept and win
June 2020For the latest episode of InPhocus, we spoke to Jamie-Lee Abtar, executive director of U.K.-based BAME Women In Travel, to learn more about the organization and what new steps brands should be considering.
U.S. short term rental demand climbing
June 2020The rental traveler population continues to skew younger than the U.S. traveler population overall, with more than four in 10 rental travelers under age 35. However, travelers 55 and older are the fastest-growing demographic of rental travelers.
Travel activities planning and booking go digital
June 2020More activity providers' have gotten onboard with the digital times in recent years. In addition, online aggregators have taken an interest in capitalizing on the opportunity, allowing the segment shift from offline to online to accelerate. This has changed how travelers engage with activities throughout the trip life cycle.
InPhocus, Episode 14 - So, we're going to launch this during a pandemic
June 2020Bryan Porter, OpenJaw's chief commercial officer, tells us about how a project can come together in the midst of the most trying of circumstances.
U.S. segments: key developments and outlook
June 2020Even though annual growth slowed considerably to just 2% in 2019 due to fears of a looming economic slowdown, Americans were still planning their vacations - all the way up to mid-March.
InPhocus, Episode 13 - Open for business, figuring out change
June 2020Luuc Elzinga, president of Netherlands-based Tiqets, which takes bookings for big-ticket attractions around the world, joins Kevin May of PhocusWire and research analyst Alice Jong of Phocuswright on the latest episode of InPhocus to talk about the issues that many suppliers are facing.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: Toronto
June 2020Ontario's occupancy has risen to just above 22%. In line with the global trend, occupancies for the province as a whole and the greater Toronto region have been higher than the city's downtown core, with large convention and business-oriented hotels suffering the greatest disruption.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: Key West
June 2020Key West is in the enviable position of having successfully contained the local spread of the virus, while enabling a relatively rapid rebound. For hoteliers having survived over two months of single-digit occupancy, the worst is hopefully behind them.
InPhocus, Episode 12 - Right place, right time for a travel startup
May 2020The CEO of FindHotel, a Netherlands-based hotel booking platform, which has survived the coronavirus outbreak from an operational perspective, Oz Har Adir, speaks to us on the latest episode of InPhocus about the situation in the Netherlands for startups and how he has managed to keep the brand's team in place, monitor the market and look at new opportunities.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: Dallas
May 2020The occupancy growth trend for Dallas is positive, and the city's normally low-performing July may be a blessing in disguise.
InPhocus, Episode 11 - An opportunity for NDC post-coronavirus
May 2020Norm Rose, a Phocuswright analyst and veteran travel technology consultant, thinks the reset phase that airlines currently find themselves in will accelerate NDC as a standard (and more) in aviation.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: Sydney
May 2020As a result of measures taken in the city, Los Angeles' rate of RevPAR decline across the weekly forecasts covering the six weeks between March 29 and May 3 has not been nearly as steep as other U.S. gateway cities like New York, Boston and San Francisco. Differences in YoY RevPAR variance for March and April showed that the impact on Los Angeles was less severe than for most major markets. This...
InPhocus, Episode 10 - Farelogix tells all on the failed Sabre deal
May 2020In this latest episode of InPhocus, PhocusWire's Kevin May talks to Jim Davidson, CEO of Farelogix, to get his take on the entire story, including the background to the deal, the court case, the decision to nix the acquisition two weeks ago and what's next for the business.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: Los Angeles
May 2020As a result of measures taken in the city, Los Angeles' rate of RevPAR decline across the weekly forecasts covering the six weeks between March 29 and May 3 has not been nearly as steep as other U.S. gateway cities like New York, Boston and San Francisco. Differences in YoY RevPAR variance for March and April showed that the impact on Los Angeles was less severe than for most major markets. This...
InPhocus, Episode 9 - Stuck in the middle with you
May 2020In this latest episode of InPhocus, we hear from David Litwak, CEO of Mozio Group (who also co-hosts the How I Got Here podcast), about his experiences as a platform for ground transportation and its difficulties with some online travel agencies. We then dig into the wider problems that OTAs and others that sit in the middle of the digital travel ecosystem have faced over the course of the last few...
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: Boston
May 2020Boston started March in better shape than New York across the board, but its downward slope accelerated much more aggressively. Despite the city's successful curve-flattening, the leisure travel ban has contributed to Boston's YoY occupancy falling off. This Phocuswright Hotel Forecast shows some potential good news for Boston is that modeling for 2Q20 shows continual improvement in May and June...
InPhocus, episode 8 - A chance to use your time wisely
April 2020Travel startups, perhaps more nimble than their larger peers in the industry, should use this opportunity to take a deep breath, ensure the finances will keep the lights on and think differently. Gerry Samuels offers guidance to new businesses that have survived the initial slump in their usual activities but have some time to consider how their businesses will look in the future.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: London
April 2020One concerning factor in the London Hotel Forecast is that the city's steep ADR decline may indicate more discounting than merely attributable to share shifts from luxury to midscale and economy chain scale properties.
InPhocus, episode 7 - Travel crises often ignite revolutions in the industry (sorry, not this time)
April 2020The current crisis will undoubtedly alter the traveler's experience of airports, accommodation, airlines and activities - but will it inspire any change in the models that underpin the industry and its relationships? Perhaps not this time, as we discuss in the latest episode of InPhocus with Phocuswright Research creator Lorraine Sileo, who has heaps of experience of seeing how the industry...
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: San Francisco
April 2020The term devastated does not sufficiently characterize the state of San Francisco hotel demand in April. Driven by a 95% evaporation of hotel occupancy, the RevPAR decline exceeded even New York City’s YoY drop. San Francisco will hit bottom this month, see a slight improvement in May and considerable (relative) rebound in June ...
InPhocus, episode 6 - Being smart is all we have at the moment
April 2020Forecasting with smart data, a future role for hotels and intermediaries, loyalty programs and what lies next for Airbnb - hefty subjects during any time period but especially so during the coronavirus outbreak. For the latest episode of InPhocus, we bring in Phocuswright analyst and hotel expert Robert Cole for a discussion on all of the above.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: Singapore
April 2020While many are looking backwards to compare the current market environment with the post-9/11 or 2008 Great Recession periods, Phocuswright prefers to look forward – trying to address the tough questions weighing on our collective minds. This Hotel Forecast focuses on Singapore.
COVID-19 Hotel Forecast: New York City
April 2020While many are looking backwards to compare the current market environment with the post-9/11 or 2008 Great Recession periods, Phocuswright prefers to look forward – trying to address the tough questions weighing on our collective minds. This Hotel Forecast focuses on New York City.
InPhocus, Episode 4 - A jolt to make us all think
April 2020In this episode of InPhocus, Kevin May interviews Yeoh Siew Hoon, founder of WebInTravel, to discuss the impact of COVID-19 on both her country and the industry, plus how its arrival as mass global event is giving brands and the industry's millions of workers the opportunity to consider how they might emerge in better shape.
Fast Facts: Traveler Sentiment in the Age of COVID-19
April 2020Phocuswright surveyed travelers from the U.S., the U.K., France and Germany to understand traveler sentiment during the coronavirus pandemic and early indicators on travel intent post-pandemic. The survey included questions about how travelers' plans have been impacted, their satisfaction with companies when changing their travel plans, considerations for future travel, and more.
Before 2020, growth slowed but was continuing
April 2020In 2019, gross bookings increased marginally to $398 billion, up just 2% compared to a 6% gain in 2018. Before the current pandemic, moderate travel growth was expected to continue through 2023, with annual increases in the 3-4% range.