Munich travel researcher in an interview: "It will definitely not be the way it used to be"

Created: 07/13/2022, 11:09 am

By: Leonie Zimmerman

War and climate change are also changing the way we go on vacation, says travel researcher Jürgen Schmude.

© Lefteris Partsalis/dpa

Germany has wanderlust.

The big rush to airports and sights is reminiscent of travel before Corona.

Will vacation go back to what it was before the pandemic?

Berlin – With rising temperatures, Germans’ desire to travel also skyrockets.

After two years of Corona restrictions on vacation, numerous people are flocking to the most popular travel destinations in Germany and around the world this year.

The result of this holiday rush can be observed impressively at German airports these days: long queues, overcrowded waiting halls and fully booked holiday planes ... despite possible mask requirements and 3G on holiday in 2022.

For many people, the journey to a holiday by the sea is a test of patience and a cost factor.

A similar picture can be seen at popular sights: crowds of people often block the view of the cultural world heritage site or the natural site.

So is mass tourism back?

Not necessarily, says the Munich travel researcher Jürgen Schmude in an interview with

- and tells where the travel industry is headed in the future instead.

Travel researcher Jürgen Schmude in an interview: "The lack of skilled workers also affects gastronomy and the hotel industry"

There is a real holiday chaos at many airports.

Is that the often predicted catch-up effect?

What we are currently observing is not necessarily due to the catch-up effect.

Rather, this is due to overlapping events.

On the one hand we have a desire to travel, but it is not much greater than before the pandemic.

And on the other hand, we have the massive shortage of skilled workers in the travel industry.

Corona has laid off many employees in aviation and tourism - and not all of them have come back.

In addition, as in many other sectors, there is currently a fairly high level of sick leave among the other employees.

In addition, the staff who are ready for action are no longer used to the current rush.

All this leads to the queues that we can currently observe. 

We currently see queues mainly at the airport.

But aviation is also increasingly affected by the shortage of skilled workers.

Will this hurt the industry in the long run?

The shortage of skilled workers that we are currently seeing in the aviation industry is only so obvious because the airports are the bottleneck for summer vacations.

There is also a shortage of staff in the hotel and catering industry.

The difference is that these industries can deal with it much more flexibly, for example with more flexible working time models.

Working conditions in tourism have also improved since the beginning of the corona pandemic.

On average, employees in the relevant industries are paid more today than before - because companies have recognized that this is the only way they can retain staff.

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Travel researcher Jürgen Schmude: "The tourism industry is working on sustainable solutions"

The Germans' desire to travel is at a record high.

How have the last two years changed the way we look at travel?

It is still the case that a larger proportion of holidaymakers stay in Germany.

The need to explore other countries is still there and is lived out.

However, we know from surveys that the appreciation for holidays is increasing significantly.

Travelers are now willing to pay a reasonable price for higher quality.

This is also necessary, for example, for package tours.

They will probably become more expensive in the future because both air fares and the cost of living are rising in many countries around the world.

But in contrast to other areas, the willingness to spend in tourism is increasing - people haven't been able to do much for two years and have saved money that they are now happy to spend on travel. 

Climate change is affecting us in more and more areas of life and is also changing our view of the world.

Does this also apply to travel?

I think some people will change their travel behavior due to the climate.

The younger generation in particular is paying more and more attention to their ecological footprint.

Many young people between the ages of 14 and 18 are already saying in surveys that they no longer want to fly to Australia after they graduate, but would rather travel within Europe.

Of course, that doesn't apply to all young people, but it does apply to part of the generation. 

And what is changing within the tourism industry towards sustainability?

The industry is definitely working on sustainable solutions.

More and more tour operators have climate change on their screens and are making transparent the CO2 emissions caused by the corresponding offers.

As a result, travelers know exactly what ecological footprint they leave behind with their vacation.

Some airlines also offer to offset CO2 emissions by planting trees.

So far, however, only one percent of passengers compensate.

It's better than nothing, but it would only have an impact if it became the standard.

Tourism researcher Jürgen Schmude: "There is a certain degree of uncertainty because of inflation"

During the peak of the pandemic, domestic vacations were the number one trend.

Will it remain, or what will determine the coming travel years?

In any case, domestic leave will not remain at the level it was at the peak of the pandemic.

But even in 2020, 52 percent of travelers still spent their holidays abroad.

Before Corona it was still 66 percent, but we can see that vacations abroad were definitely an issue despite travel restrictions.

What has changed: Travel destinations abroad are closer to Germany than before.

Nevertheless, Spain will probably be the front runner again this year.

Basically, crises have an impact on people's travel behavior.

Is the Ukraine war also changing the way we vacation?

The Ukraine war does not have a major impact on the choice of travel destinations, since Eastern Europe is not one of the most popular holiday destinations for Germans anyway.

However, there is some uncertainty about inflation.

Many are opting for the cheaper or shorter summer vacation this year because other areas of life have become significantly more expensive.

But most of them don't want to give up their vacation completely. 

What conclusions do you draw from the last two years for the future in terms of travel?

It definitely won't go back to how it was before the pandemic.

We will permanently have a higher volume of domestic travel, from which destinations in Germany will benefit, while tour operators offering trips abroad will suffer.

And we will slowly but surely move towards more climate-aware travel.

This will take a long time because we have been socialized with a different travel behavior and behavior changes take time - but the change will come.