This year's peak season has disappeared for travel giant Ving. Now the company is hoping for next summer – but the road to get there is long and uncertainty in the world is increasing.
”"It's a sensitive situation. But sooner or later this will pass," says CEO Magnus Wikner.
At the end of June, Magnus Wikner was optimistic. He stated that next summer would be business as usual for the travel industry.
In mid-September, after a virtually non-existent summer season and, according to him, increased uncertainty about the future, the CEO stands by his statement. But he doesn't sound as confident.
When Ving opened bookings for next summer just under three months ago, reservations poured in. The booking situation for next summer has since climbed steadily and is now 20 percent up compared to summer 2019.
But in recent weeks, uncertainty about the future has increased. As more countries introduce testing requirements before entry and the spread of the virus increases, customers have become more cautious about booking, according to Magnus Wikner.
”"It's a difficult situation to assess. But sooner or later this will pass. We believe and assume that next summer could be really good. We are also booking for next winter, although with significantly less capacity planned compared to last year," says Magnus Wikner.
The autumn break, which is one of the industry's most popular holiday weeks of the year, is so far "relatively well booked" this year as well, according to the company. The Canary Islands, especially Gran Canaria, and Cyprus are the most popular destinations for the autumn break. However, volumes throughout the autumn are significantly reduced, making it difficult to compare with what it is like in a normal year.
However, there are many uncertainties: How will the infection develop in different countries, how soon will there be a vaccine, and how well can we learn to live with the virus?
”"It's a very sensitive situation now and it's very difficult to know where all this is going. The worst-case scenario would of course be if winter travel had to be cancelled, but we don't think that will happen," says Wikner and continues:
”"But of course we plan long-term and we are working with our owners and banks to get us all the way through this crisis. Since this broke out, we have been working with different scenarios and planning and adapting accordingly. It can go quickly one way or the other."”
And while Wikner says that the group has benefited from several government support packages, he criticizes the lack of any support directly targeted to the travel industry. He believes that there is a risk that competition will be distorted if other countries provide targeted support to travel companies, while Sweden does not.
”"What we are in now is the most complex and largest crisis that the entire industry has been in, and crisis management is part of the industry. But the difference is that it is now so difficult to assess the development. We hope and believe that there will be more targeted support for our industry in Sweden as well if this drags on."”
Source: TT
