With 2022 on the horizon, your team is most likely working on new initiatives, campaigns, and content production at full speed. While global measures to address the COVID situation are well underway, everyday communication remains a maze. Pivoting to changes in foreign travel regulations, to be specific.
In late November, the highly contagious Omicron formally declared a variation, which has since spread over the world at an alarming rate. Changes in border regulations and destination requirements have moved from country to country throughout the holidays. As you prepare your 2022 content, conveying travel needs in a clear and timely manner will be critical to assisting travelers in properly planning their trips.
Building Trust Requires Authoritative Information
Throughout 2022, travelers will continue to manage a highly complex travel scene. Organizations that show empathy, align with traveler values, and provide accurate information can be reliable and consistent travel partners for their target audience.
Travelers are looking for companies that they can trust. According to research on travel trust, trust is the most important factor for 46 percent of travelers when selecting a travel provider. The research looked into COVID management trust, price transparency, and data protection. Only 56% of those polled thought the tourism sector handled COVID well, citing concerns about air filtration, social isolation, and refunds/exchanges.
It’s vital to keep your guests informed about the newest travel advancements and advice, in addition to explicitly detailing your health and safety initiatives. With such a rapidly growing problem, even the most reliable web sources may not always be up to date. Travelers can use technology to stay up to date on the latest cautions and advisories from across the world, providing valuable information at every stage of their travel journey.
Our COVID-19 Travel Restrictions API, for example, exclusively collects data from official sources like IATA’s Timatic and government websites. Per country, international travel limitations, and regulations are given, as well as information on required forms and insurance. Tour Your Destination’s AI runs hundreds of checks per day to guarantee that passengers get the most up-to-date information available, no matter where they are going.
Any content team in 2022 must, of course, have a consistent brand voice while developing material. Tour Your Destination’s foreign travel limitations widget can be customized to match your brand’s look and feel, ensuring that data is consistent with your other marketing efforts. These customized solutions are reflected in the travel requirements maps provided by Norwegian and LATAM Airlines.
Travel Restrictions for International Travel are Changing Rapidly
When it comes to vacation preparation, travelers confront a slew of issues, and traveling internationally raises the stakes even higher. Test, form, and health insurance requirements differ across countries and might alter at any time. Children, teenagers, and travelers from nations designated as virus variant regions may face additional requirements.
Furthermore, some nations consider completely vaccinated as finishing a single-dose vaccine or the second dose of a two-dose series, whilst others require a booster.
It’s vital, then, that you provide key information about safety measures, travel standards, and booking flexibility to your customers. Whether you’re a travel agency, airline, hotel chain, tourism bureau, online travel agency, or other travel providers, this content should be prominent in your marketing efforts and serve as the foundation for your other content.
Marriott’s Commitment to Clean is an excellent example of well-organized health content.
This digital resource covers contactless technologies, loyalty program extensions, and humanitarian efforts with medical personnel during the pandemic. A video demonstrating cleaning techniques is included on the page, as well as a personal note from Bill Marriott.
Assisting with Travel Requirements assists in the traveler’s journey
A traveler will find it quite useful if foreign travel regulations and guidelines are presented straightforwardly and thoroughly. While many tourists may have conducted their search engine searches for holiday preparation before the pandemic, it is now a daunting task.
Are these the only forms we’ll require?
Is this information going to be the same in a month? Is it a week? Tomorrow?
What if things change while we’re away from home?
Offering official and thoroughly reviewed information in your content makes the booking process go more smoothly, and it can also help with other aspects of the traveler’s journey. Integration of global travel rules into the bot and messaging tools, for example, can assist reduce call center lineups, while requirements checklists can make boarding easier.
Travel needs might also be a valuable resource for your team! During the previous two years, marketing and creative teams across the industry have learned the need for flexibility in content preparation. This data can assist inform and inspiring your email marketing initiatives, destination guides, and social media content as foreign travel regulations and rules change.
Critical for 2022 Content: International Travel Insights
International travel is on hold for many travelers until the environment improves. According to recent Deloitte research, only 40% of UK and 48% of US passengers feel safe on an airplane. And, for all generations, destinations near to home that can be scheduled last minute and allows for social separation are some of the most essential criteria in booking leisure holidays. Severe Omicron surges and thousands of airline cancellations have also occurred in recent weeks, which are predicted to have a significant impact on international travel in the following months.
The necessity of emphasizing foreign travel needs, on the other hand, has not changed. Travelers have their sights set on epic vacations down the road, including world wonders and fantasy places, as we mentioned in our future of travel column. Though there are numerous hurdles ahead, travelers can look forward to a brighter future with over 100 billion vaccination doses currently delivered worldwide and positive evidence from booster research. Presenting foreign travel information now gives your travel community confidence that when it’s safe for tourists again, you’re a reliable source.
International travel restrictions are set to change at breakneck speed as the world prepares for winter COVID difficulties. It will be critical to provide reliable data to your travelers to protect public health, alleviate trip planning stress, and build confidence among your travel community.
