After a year characterized by an unprecedented lack of predictability for the hospitality industry, we at Guesty decided to try to remove some of the uncertainty surrounding the future of travel by shaping an informed forecast of what’s to come.
To do so, we surveyed over 500 players in the global travel, hospitality and home-sharing space to gather their insights and predictions about everything from the timing of travel recovery to how the hotel industry will adapt to consumers’ increased interest in alternative accommodations in a post-COVID world.
You can skip this post and download the full report now, packed with over 30 compelling predictions for the industry, or enjoy some of the key takeaways below.
Vaccines Are Boosting Consumer Confidence to Travel
35% of the professional hosts and property management companies surveyed have already seen an uplift in 2021 reservation volume following the announcements of vaccine efficacy. Some have reported increases of as much as 75% to 100%.
The Industry is Split on Pricing & Flexibility
43.9% of the professional hosts and property management companies in our respondent pool have already made price adjustments for dates in 2021 in the light of the vaccines, with 24.4% having raised rates in anticipation of greater demand and 19.5% having lowered them to be more competitive.
As far as whether or not hosts will continue offering cancellation policies as travel normalizes, our respondents were almost evenly split, with 50.7% believing property management companies will now have to cater to a permanently changed consumer base and 49.3% of the opinion that original cancellation policies will be reinstated once the effects of the pandemic are under control.
Rentals Will Reign Supreme
Throughout the pandemic we’ve seen an increase in travelers opting for private rentals over hotels, primarily to maintain social distancing. An overwhelming 83.2% of our respondents feel that short-term rentals have won these travelers over and they will continue to book private accommodations rather than traditional hotel stays once COVID-19 is behind us.
Digital Nomadism Will Thrive
We’ve seen many new travel trends surface throughout the pandemic and when asked which would endure post-COVID, widespread remote working topped the list, with 33.5% of the vote. To capitalize on this growing market, it would be wise for property management companies to ensure their rentals comfortably accommodate remote workers.
Travelers Will Make Up for Lost Time
The best way to prepare for incoming guests is to understand their reasons for making the trip. 54.1% of our respondents anticipate that reuniting with friends and family will be the number one motivation for travel after COVID-19. Not far behind is revenge travel, the phenomenon of traveling to make up for lost travel opportunities throughout the pandemic, earning support from 53% of our respondents (survey-takers were able to select up to two motivations).
There’s A Lot More Where That Came From
Want to hear more about what’s next for the short-term rental industry?
Download the full report to access exclusive insights into the road to travel recovery and the lasting impact of COVID-19 on the travel ecosystem.
Zahava has been writing for Guesty since March of 2017. She's enjoying learning all there is to know about short-term property management and relaying solutions to Guesty's readers, helping to make the demanding jobs of property managers just a little bit simpler.
