The COVID outbreak and subsequent restrictions announced in several states have put a damper on the desire for Americans to travel for the holidays.
Morning Consult, on behalf of the American Hotel & Lodging Association, conducted the survey earlier this month and asked 2,200 adults about their recent travel habits since the virus outbreak.
The survey showed 72 percent of Americans said they are unlikely to travel for Thanksgiving and 69 percent said they are unlikely to travel for Christmas. Only three of those surveyed in ten have taken a leisure trip since March.
The survey said the hotel industry, on the whole, has been severely impacted by the coronavirus outbreak. The survey showed the occupancy rate in hotels in major cities is about 35 percent, down from 71.8 percent a year ago.
“This holiday season will be especially difficult for all Americans, and our industry is no exception,” Chip Rogers, President and CEO of the American Hotel & Lodging Association. “Fewer people will be traveling, and business travel remains nearly nonexistent.”
TRENDPOST: As Gerald Celente warned, the virus restrictions have escalated the world’s “Greatest Depression,” and it will worsen as more COVID War restrictions and mandates are forced on society.
Last Friday alone, governors of California, Oregon, and Washington urged their state residents to stay home for the holidays. Governor Andrew Cuomo, the New York Democrat, also announced an increase of National Guard at airports. Travelers to New York airports are required to present a negative COVID-19 test in the days prior to flying and be subject to a three-day quarantine after leaving the airport.
Unmentioned in the media coverage is the damage this has inflicted on the tourism, hotel, restaurant, and other businesses and industries that will be further devastated by these dictatorial rules, which are imposed with no regard to a representative form of government.
McKinsey released a report in June that suggested it will not be until 2023 or later before the hotel industry returns to pre-coronavirus levels. This virus – even with a suitable vaccine – will be with us for some time, and businesses cannot afford to keep operating in the continuous state of lockdown limbo as politicians keep announcing new “stop doing business” orders.
