Group travelers are adjusting to airline difficulties and delays similar to the general population.
What they said:
• Ours roll with the flow.
• Ours have adjusted well. We control the airline tickets for our groups through the airport process.
• At our table, we feel our travelers are getting used to the decline in overall service at airports and on flights. They’ve adjusted. And they’re purchasing more travel insurance products.
• It’s all about communication. Tell your travelers it’s “travel day.” Expect the unexpected. Leave plenty of time for everything in case something goes wrong. Talk them through the process patiently.
“It’s fair to say that groups in general are adapting well to the new norms of air travel,” said Lacy. “Most of these travelers have numerous, if not dozens, of overseas trips in their rear-view mirrors, which offer perspective for the challenges we are all encountering in today’s airports.”
Group travelers are confronting and defying threats of terrorism to travel.
What they said:
• If I’m OK, they’re OK. If I’ll go, they’ll go.
• This is always changing; we cannot prepare for it or adjust to it. Some of us are seeing increased purchases of travel insurance. We’re all being more observant and more cautious on planes and elsewhere.
• We have some travelers who are very defiant. They will not let terrorists stop them from seeing what they want to see.
• Some of us are staying clear of larger cities like Paris or Rome, but it can happen anywhere. Many of our travelers are still working their bucket lists, and they travel with us when we go.
“Again, I think that group travelers mirror the larger travel population when it comes to incidents across the globe,” said Lacy. “Those who count travel as one of the highlights of a life well lived are not going to let political extremists dictate their travel schedules. And there is definitely an element of security one feels with a group.”