The world is opening and so are the minds of people towards travel. Travel and tourism are seeing a reasonably positive revival story. Travel is getting both redefined also refined. Treading with confidence but also with care seems to be the general temperament. We have with us industry thought leader Ankush Nijhawan, co-founder, joint MD – TBO.com & MD Nijhawan Group, who shares his articulate views on the way forward on Reemarkabl – a platform for Stories of Sense and not Sensationalism.
1. Travel is probably more refined and business certainly redefined? Your take on it?
Definitely the world has changed so has the traveller be it leisure of business. But I somehow believe it’s going to be short term as the world is now settling down. However, the fear remains. If someone gets positive while travelling, then what happens? What are the quarantine rules, what is the insurance cover? But what I have realised in the last two months is people are bored now and the world wants to move on. They want to create memories again. They want to go back to where they were in 2019. Be it young, be it old, be it a man be it a woman, I think everyone wants to step out.
2) What the trade trade and the industry needs to keep in mind in the almost the new world order.
Now what has changed in my opinion is that the travel agent today plays a very important role in handholding the passenger in terms of queries in terms of questions, in terms of certain requirements they believe they should know before they travel out to countries outside India. Be it leisure, be it business, the fundamental remains the same. However, the process of sanitisation and hygiene is very important and critical for a buying decision of a traveller.
3 Your Message to the industry as a leading B2B partner?
The message to the industry that 2022 will be a super year and I believe there will be significant pent up demand starting summer when borders open up. Hopefully the vaccination policies and the RTPCR rules will further get relaxed. I am sure the world will go back to what it was in 2019.