Alexander Cornwell, Jamie Freed

SYDNEY/ABU DHABI – Glenn Turnley from Australia was planning a trip of three weeks to Japan in March. This would be his first time abroad since November when the Omicron coronavirus virus exploded on the scene.

Turnley claims that he has been fully immunized and given a booster, but Omicron’s transmissibility makes it likely that he will cancel. This is even though Japan is open to international visitors.

He stated that he was less concerned about Delta’s health because of the available vaccines, which seemed to work well.

I don’t wish to spend any holiday in quarantine, or something like that in another country, particularly in foreign countries.

The Omicron COVID-19 variant is not as severe as the Delta one, but it’s causing disruption in many airlines and has dimmed the quarter-end outlook.

Due to its transmissibility, many countries have tightened border controls. There is a greater risk that travellers who are fully vaccinated will be tested positive once they arrive. They could then become stranded for up to weeks at the destination.

Jozsef Valradi, chief executive officer of European low-cost airline WizzAir, said that there were uncertainties and that you might get trapped in an unpredictable country if you take COVID.

While I doubt that the demand for travel is completely back, we do see some individuals who are more willing to risk their lives in order to return to traveling.

Olivier Ponti from ForwardKeys, Vice President of Insights, stated that Omicron’s rapid spread and short COVID-19 testing times make it a serious concern.

ForwardKeys data indicates that international flight bookings have reached 38% of their 2019 level, which is well below the October peak of 58% but up from the December low.

FRESH TOUR HURDLES

Omicron Spreads can be risky for those who are willing to travel. However, there is a lot of change and hurdles.

Greg Lauer, a Brisbane-based executive in business development, said that he was planning on visiting his company’s Hyderabad headquarters next week with three of his colleagues. He had booked the trip in December.

Two of the Omicron-related risks prompted two to leave, although he and another colleague were open to continuing.

Lauer stated that getting stuck was the biggest danger. I have extensive insurance, and I am vaxxed.

However, India had reintroduced mandatory quarantine to foreign visitors last week and he cancelled his trip.

Recent survey by Jefferies of U.S. travelers found Omicron to have caused 20% of respondents cancel plans due case counts, and another 20% due restrictions at their destination.

Omicron is also a risk to the recovery of lucrative business travel segments. Major businesses are further delaying return to work and big events, such as Davos’ World Economic Forum, are being postponed.

Brendan Sobie, a Singaporean analyst said that Omicron’s impact for the first quarter was significant. In some markets it is even more important than Delta.

PAUSE DURING BOOKINGS

Serving customers has never been easier, even when there is demand.

Due to the high number of people infected by COVID-19, many airlines from Australia, Finland and the United States are having difficulty finding enough staff to fly.

According to OAGs, global carriers have reduced their capacity by 7.2% this week, which is one of the biggest week-on week drops over the past six months. It includes a 44% reduction at Europe’s Ryanair and 17% decrease at Lufthansa.

Willie Walsh, Director of International Air Transport Association said that “international ticket sales in December and January were sharply lower than 2019 suggesting a more challenging first quarter than was expected.”

Delta Air Lines (NYSE 🙂 Chief Executive Ed Bastian stated that international bookings were “paused” because of border restrictions, but that he expects strong spring and summer trans-Atlantic routes after rules are relaxed due to increased demand.

The huge Omicron case wave has sparked some hope that COVID-19 may be on the way to being endemic, similar to the flu. This is a positive in the short-term.

However, for the moment, travelers will need to consider all possible risks, according to Irene Lai (global medical director, International SOS), which provides security and health advices for companies.

Lai of Sydney said, “Travel can be very difficult.” He doesn’t intend to travel overseas until at least 2023.

“We are all aware of this: A country’s entry requirements may change at any time,” she stated. It is possible to get stuck.