The Future of Travel – Looking forward to an unprecedented bounce back.
We live in challenging times. The new norm involves zoom (never heard of zoom prior to lockdown), webinars and quarantinies! As the lock down eases, football starts up again (ugh!) and shops reopen, we await the removal of the Foreign Office ban on non-essential travel. Government imposing quarantine (rather too late in my opinion) dashed our hopes of a bounce back this summer.
On a much more positive note, there are now real signs that British visitors will be welcomed around the world and most insurance companies have confirmed that they will cover Covid 19. The cover on my policy looks like they have included most eventualities but I am still pouring through the small print.
We are happy to report that we have confirmed a handful of bookings for winter sun to Maldive & Sri Lanka. Green shoots; we are definitely seeing huge interest for islands, boutique hotels and villas in remote locations. Caribbean islands and our favourite Indian Ocean islands of Mauritius, Seychelles, Maldives and Sri Lanaka. Our ground partners and hotels around the world have been furnishing us with all the health and safety procedures that they have put in place which will keep our clients safe.
During the past few years I have rarely spent more than 6 weeks at a time in England and I have resorted to traveling around the world on Zoom in search of fresh ideas and I am now in the process of refreshing our experiences that follow our love of authentic & sustainable adventures.
I hope living through lockdown will translate into a greater consciousness about the impact we have when we travel and that the crisis has highlighted the benefits of sustainable travel. During the lockdown people have done more exercise, meditation, cooking, baking, and wildlife programs so we have tailored our new suggested itineraries.
- Slow-paced-longer trips and less short breaks -the greener option.
- Immersive experiences with an emphasis on sustainability. Interacting with the local community.
- Wellness Breaks- beyond a spa with nutritious food- don’t we all dream of a good massage and meditating in a tropical jungle.
- Active adventure, hiking, biking – challenging yourself.
- Discovering destinations though the local cuisine.
We would love to hear from you about when you would consider traveling again. Our office (in our home) has been open through out, refunding and rearranging 2020 Summer holidays for 2021 and we would be delighted to discuss your plans and create the perfect itinerary together, whether that is a much-needed short break later this year or you are dreaming of a special trip in 2021.
We are currently undertaking a survey in conjunction with our trade association AITO (The Specialist Travel Association) to understand peoples’ attitudes to holidays in the future, in order that we and the wider travel industry can plan and meet your needs. We would really appreciate your input by completing this quick survey – it will take around five minutes, and your responses are strictly confidential. If you are interested, we would be happy to share the results of the survey.
We look forward to hearing from you 020 7225 1483 or sales@travel-gallery.co.uk. The agency will be “open” with a locked door from the end of this month. Our living room will once again be our entertainment space. If you are walking past, let’s exchange a wave, smile or greeting at a safe distance.
Farzana Dobbs