Tours & Activities in 2020 and Beyond

The Covid-19 pandemic has spared no segment or region of the travel industry as stay-at-home orders, immigration restrictions, and general concern about catching and spreading the novel coronavirus brought business to a near standstill in March.

Halfway into 2020, some travel has returned but the industry is still in fallow territory. With flights and hotel stays at historic lows, the in-destination sector has seen its bookings plummet too. While many operators are doggedly pursuing all the business they can get in difficult times, many others have closed their doors – at least for the time being. 

“We have seen some people closing down their business, people closing until late 2021, hibernating,” says Olan Sullivan, CEO of TrekkSoft, an activity booking software provider based in Interlaken, Switzerland.

But there’s also reason for optimism. TrekkSoft observed the beginnings of a recovery in June, when the volume of bookings processed jumped 400% over May. Although 2020 summer travel has been far from 2019 levels, O’Sullivan sees hopeful signs.

“Once people thought it was relatively safe to travel, they did,” he says. “As they have felt safer, people act pretty normally. They take their holiday, they spend money.”