While “a crisis like no other” (in the words of the International Monetary Fund) rages, it is important to identify and highlight the sectors of the aviation, tourism and travel retail business that are beginning more rapidly, to recover.
In this column, we bring you regular updates about how airports, airlines, travel retailers and brands are planning for and investing in the recovery; how governments are opening borders; and how various stakeholders are shaping up for the new normal. Please send your contributions to Martin@MoodieDavittReport.com.
3 July
UK
The UK government has announced that it will be relaxing its requirement for inbound travellers from certain states to quarantine, effective from 10 July. Under the new regulations, passengers arriving from these ‘travel corridor’ countries are no longer required to self-isolate for 14 days. This is under the condition that they have not been in a country that is not included in the travel corridor list in the 14 days prior to arrival in the UK.
The Department for Transport has revealed the full list of travel corridor countries listed below.
Ireland, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man are already exempt as part of the common travel area. Information regarding travel into Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland will be announced at a later date.
Arriving passengers must also complete a passenger locator form prior to arrival to help with the country’s track and trace protocols.
Denmark
Gebr Heinemann today reopened its business at Copenhagen Airport. Gebr Heinemann Denmark Managing Director Esben Keller said today on LinkedIn: “It has been a tough time for business and colleagues, but we are very pleased to welcome our colleagues back to the family, and we now take the first step of many towards recovery of our business.
“I want to thank all employees for showing great perseverance and are looking very much forward to restart the journey together. Proud of my team who have worked incredible hard preparing our shops for the great reopening today. We are more ready than ever to delight our customers again I am confident that we will come out of this crisis stronger as humans, colleagues and as a winning team.”
Germany
Berlin Schönefeld and Tegel airports have announced a much enhanced flight schedule for July, which will feature 36 airlines flying to 100 destinations in 40 countries.
Qatar Airways is resuming flights to Doha three times a week while easyJet is initially offering 39 connections from Berlin and expanding its flight services over the summer. Ryanair has been increasing its flight operations gradually since 21 June. From July, there will be 50 connections to and from Schönefeld and Tegel. Airlines such as Condor, SunExpress and Wizz Air are also increasing capacity.
Lufthansa is again operating several flights a day from Berlin-Tegel to Frankfurt and Munich. Air France, KLM, British Airways and Brussels Airlines have also resumed their respective routes to Paris, Amsterdam, London and Brussels daily or several times a day.
Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg CEO Prof. Dr.-Ing. Engelbert Lütke Daldrup said: “Air traffic from Berlin will increase significantly. Most airlines are back with a wide range of European holiday destinations as well as regular scheduled flights. Holidays, business trips and visits from friends and family are now possible again on a large scale and tourism in the capital region is picking up again. Up to 30,000 passengers will travel daily to and from Schönefeld and Tegel in July.”
Germany
Hamburg Airport this week reopened Terminal 2 and highlighted strong demand for overseas travel among its customers in northern Germany. The airport said that the flight schedule in July will be almost double that of June.
USA
American Airlines plans to resume many of its long-haul international routes in Winter 2020 but will also cut under-performing services. The company said that Summer 2021 international long-haul capacity will be down by -25% compared to 2019 as its “right-sizes” its international network.
Services to return in the Winter 2020 season include Charlotte to London and Munich; Dallas Fort Worth to Buenos Aires Ezeiza, Lima and São Paulo; Los Angeles to London Heathrow; New York JFK to Paris CDG, Buenos Aires Ezeiza and São Paulo, Miami to Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and Santiago de Chile; Philadelphia to Amsterdam, Dublin and Madrid and Phoenix to London Heathrow.
American plans to rely heavily on connectivity through partner airlines’ hubs in future. By 2021, it said, it will operate a full schedule from major US airports to London Heathrow and travellers can connect through British Airways’ network from there. From Seattle it will use Alaska Airlines’ connectivity, which will include new services to London and Bangalore from next year. American also aims to move its Shanghai service from Los Angeles to Seattle.
American will exit several routes, including three trans-Atlantic routes (Barcelona, Rome and Paris CDG) from both Charlotte Douglas International Airport and Philadelphia International Airport. The company will also exit five routes from Los Angeles International to destinations in Asia and South America, notably Hong Kong, Beijing, Buenos Aires Ezeiza, São Paulo and Shanghai Pudong (which it plans to move to Seattle).
Dallas Fort Worth International Airport will be American’s major trans-Pacific hub while Miami International will continue to be the main hub for flights to the Caribbean and Latin America. Once government restrictions on trans-Atlantic flying subside, Philadelphia will continue to be American’s primary hub for service to Europe.
2 July
USA
Aeromexico resumed its popular service between Austin and Mexico City today. It was a significant milestone, marking the return of international flights to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.
UK
UK
Francois Bourienne, Chief Commercial Officer at AGS Airports (Aberdeen, Glasgow, and Southampton airports), notes that British Airways continued flying from London Heathrow to both Aberdeen Airport and Glasgow Airport even during the darkest hours of the pandemic in the UK, supporting repatriation, movement of key workers and shipment of crucial cargo.
From today, he points out, British Airways is flying twice day from London Heathrow to both Scottish airports, giving access to London, Scotland and to the airline’s worldwide network. Flights from Glasgow Airport to London City Airport will also resume on 20 July.
Austria
Vienna Airport Joint Chief Executive Officer Julian Jäger (pictured centre below) reports that as of yesterday Austrian Airlines is connecting Vienna and New York. “For Vienna Airport as a hub, long-haul flights are of the essence, which is why I am especially happy about yesterday’s flight OS89! It goes without saying that all members of the crew were highly motivated and ready for their first intercontinental flight since the beginning of March.”
Ireland
Aer Rianta International has resumed operations at Cork Airport, following the restart of its Irish business at Dublin Airport on Monday.
As reported, other ARI stores open include those at Bahrain Airport, Riyadh King Khalid International, Larnaca and Paphos in Cyprus and its (distribution) operation in Qatar.
1 July
International
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) announced today that passenger demand in May (measured in revenue passenger kilometers or RPKs), dropped -91.3% year-on-year. This was a mild uptick from the -94% annual decline recorded in April 2020. The improvement was driven by recovery in some domestic markets, most notably China.
“May was not quite as terrible as April,” said IATA Director General and CEO Alexandre de Juniac. “That’s about the best thing that can be said. As predicted, the first improvements in passenger demand are occurring in domestic markets. International traffic remained virtually stopped in May. We are only at the very beginning of a long and difficult recovery. And there is tremendous uncertainty about what impact a resurgence of new COVID-19 cases in key markets could have.”
Germany
Lufthansa Group has expanded its summer flight schedule and increased services by +40% from now until the end of October. The German aviation company is deploying a total of 380 aircrafts to address growing passenger demand for longer-term flight planning.
This means that Lufthansa Group is now operating 50% of its total fleet and flying 200 more aircrafts than it did in June. The company aims to resume 90% of all short to medium-haul services and 70% of all long-haul services by the end of October.
“Little by little, the borders open again. Demand is increasing, in the short term but also in the long term,” commented Lufthansa AG Executive Board Member Harry Hohmeister. “We are therefore consistently expanding our flight schedule and our global network and pushing ahead with our restart. I am pleased that we can now offer our guests even more connections to all parts of the world with all Lufthansa Group Airlines via all hubs.”
Qatar
Qatar Airways relaunched flights to 11 more destinations today, its largest single day of restarts, in what the carrier has dubbed ‘Take-off Wednesday’.
By mid-July, the airline’s network will expand to over 430 weekly flights to more than 65 destinations.
The airline said that if flight restrictions are eased throughout July, it can resume almost two thirds of its pre-COVID-19 network by the end of the month.
This means the number of flights would almost double in July with close to 3,500 scheduled, compared to just under 2,100 in June.
Full story here.
UK
Starbucks and WHSmith have now reopened in Glasgow Airport departures, with more retail partners including Boots and World Duty Free expected to reopen from Wednesday 15 July.
It comes as the airport ramps up flight schedules, starting today.
EasyJet’s daily Bristol, Luton and Stansted flights return today and the airline has also launched a new daily service to Birmingham. Ryanair will also resume its twice-weekly Krakow flights from today with Wroclaw and Brussels Charleroi services to return on Friday and Saturday respectively. The airline’s Dublin route has increased to a daily service, while British Airways’ London Heathrow route will increase to a double-daily service.
Emirates has also confirmed that Glasgow’s Dubai service is set to return on 15 July and will initially operate four services per week.
US
Travel analytics company ForwardKeys has said that flight bookings for the start of the upcoming Independence Day weekend are just -16.9% behind the same day in 2019.
The company’s latest research outlines how recovery in US domestic travel is taking shape. The long weekend to mark Independence Day will be a new high point in the rebound, it noted, even amid a sharp rise in COVID-19 cases in some US states.
Full story here.
Ireland
Aer Rianta International (ARI) has released a video and new images through The Moodie Davitt Report, highlighting its plan for store reopenings and explaining how it is encouraging travellers to purchase. The company is rolling out a range of special offers on key products to reignite shopper interest, accompanied by a strong communications campaign.
In the video, filmed this week, ARI Global Head of Beauty Deirdre Devaney hailed the work of ARI teams around the world in the reopening phase, noting, “It was much easier to shut down that to open up.”
She said: “We have communicated throughout with brand partners on the closing down and the impact that was going to have [and about] how we were going to reopen and showcase their brands in what is a significantly changed environment.”
For the video and images of ARI stores and staff as the business reopens, click here.
Europe
Ryanair will operate over 1,000 daily flights across Europe from today, as travel and tourism ramps up in the region and as flight restrictions ease.
The leading low-cost carrier will run flights to 200 European airports, restoring almost 90% of its pre-COVID-19 route network, although with lower frequencies.
Ryanair Group CEO Michael O’Leary said: “We have been back flying approximately 250 flights daily for the last ten days of June to bring our aircraft, our crews and our maintenance teams back into service. Starting today, we are operating 1,000 daily flights across our entire European network, which is 40% of our normal July capacity. We expect in July to carry more than 4.5 million customers.
“It’s time for Europe to go back flying again, it’s time to reboot Europe’s tourism industry.”
Belarus/Turkey
Belavia – Belarusian Airlines has started flights from Minsk to Antalya Airport as of today, the first of many in the summer 2020 season.
UK
30 June
Europe
EU governments today agreed to lift travel restrictions on a ‘safe list’ of third party states whose residents can travel into the regional bloc from 1 July.
The list agreed by the EU Council of Ministers includes Algeria, Australia, Canada, Georgia, Japan, Montenegro, Morocco, New Zealand, Rwanda, Serbia, South Korea, Thailand, Tunisia and Uruguay.
China will soon be added, subject to reciprocity, said the Council. The US, ravaged by the COVID-19 spread, is not included on the initial list.
Schengen-associated countries (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland) also qualify, while residents of Andorra, Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican are considered as EU residents for the purpose of this recommendation. UK travellers can visit EU states but must quarantine on their return. EU governments lifted restrictions between EU states on 15 June though some governments continue to limit visitors from certain states.
The list of travel-friendly states will be updated every two weeks, said the Council.
The criteria to determine the third countries for which travel restrictions should be lifted cover the epidemiological situation and containment measures, including physical distancing, as well as economic and social considerations.
Qatar/Canada
Qatar Airways will operate three flights to Toronto Pearson International Airport every week from 4 July as it continues to extend its network. The airline already operates four flights per week to Montreal in Canada.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “We have worked closely with the Government of Canada and its embassies around the world during this crisis to safely bring home over 16,000 Canadians through our scheduled flights to Montreal and special charter flights to Toronto and Vancouver.
“Qatar Airways has never stopped operating to Canada throughout this crisis and we are pleased to be able to further strengthen our support to the people of Canada with the addition of these three weekly scheduled flights to Toronto.”
Kuwait
Commercial flights at Kuwait International Airport will resume on 1 August. The government has agreed on a three-stage resumption plan, with the airport initially operating at 30% capacity.
Egypt
EgyptAir will resume flying tomorrow (1 July), with new destinations being introduced throughout July.
From 1 July, the state-owned flag carrier will start flights to Abu Dhabi, Addis Ababa, Amsterdam, Athens, Beirut, Berlin, Brussels, Budapest, Dubai, Erbil, Frankfurt, Istanbul, Tunis, Juba, London, Milan, Munich, New York, Paris, Rome, Sharjah, Toronto, Vienna, and Washington.
Flights to Copenhagen, Guangzhou and Geneva will resume on 8 July. From 15 July, the airline will restart its service to Barcelona, Dar es Salaam and Madrid.
A health declaration form will need to be filled out by non-Egyptian passengers during the flight before landing.
South Africa
Airports Company South Africa will reopen Port Elizabeth, Upington and Bloemfontein airports tomorrow (1 July).
“Airport management and staff have been getting ready for this moment for a few weeks now; they have implemented the extensive measures that are required by the regulations. Airport staff have been trained and are ready to activate the new procedures,” Airports Company South Africa Spokesperson Gopolang Peme said.
The airport operator reopened South Africa’s three busiest airports – O.R. Tambo, Cape Town and King Shaka – on 1 June and reports that passengers have been receptive to the hygiene measures.
Turkey
ATÜ Duty Free, the partnership between TAV Airports and Unifree Duty Free/Gebr Heinemann, has started reopening its stores in Turkish airports.
The retailer first restarted operations in the ATÜ store in the domestic terminal of Milas-Bodrum Airport last week. This has now also been joined by the Hermès, Bvlgari and Montblanc boutiques in Istanbul Airport.
UK
London City Airport CEO Robert Sinclair has released a message that welcomes passengers back as the airport reintroduces additional routes.
The London airport resumed commercial operations on 21 June, with several new routes set to be introduced in July.
Domestic flights to Teesside and Dundee will restart on 6 July. These will be followed by British Airways CityFlyer routes to Ibiza, Florence, Málaga and Palma on 10 July. The airport’s most popular route – KLM’s flight to Amsterdam – will restart on 13 July. The network will then be boosted on 20 July with flights to Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dublin.
Lebanon
Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport will reopen on 1 July, with Middle East Airlines set to resume operations on the same day.
Passengers from Abu Dhabi, Accra, Amman, Athens, Baghdad, Basra, Brussels, Cairo, Dammam, Dubai, Erbil, Frankfurt, Geneva, Istanbul, Jeddah, Lagos, Larnaca, London, Medina, Najaf, Paris and Riyadh will need to have tested negative for COVID-19 96 hours before flying with the airline. A further test will be done on arrival.
Passengers flying from Abidjan, Copenhagen, Doha, Kuwait, Milan, Rome or Yerevan will take a test on arrival and a further one 72 hours after landing.
Estonia
Tallink Grupp is adding more departures to its Helsinki-Riga and Turku-Tallinn routes for August, citing strong consumer demand. The temporary Helsinki-Riga route was originally due to operate only until 16 August, but it will now continue until at least 28 August.
Between 17-28 August, Silja Serenade will operate on this route with departures from Helsinki on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
The Baltic Queen will ply the Turku-Tallinn route on weekdays in July, and on weekends from 31 July, with additional departures on Fridays. The increased sailing schedule offers Tallink an opportunity to build its crucial onboard shopping business.
“The two new temporary routes Helsinki-Riga and Turku-Tallinn have proved very popular among our customers very quickly, so we are pleased to be able to offer even more opportunities to travel on these routes in August,” said Tallink CEO Paavo Nõgene.
“As travel opportunities to more distant places remain limited and confidence to travel further afield than the Baltics and Finland this summer is low, it is important that we continue to provide suitable options for everyone who wants to travel in our region. We will only sell a certain amount of tickets for each departure so that the vessels would not be too crowded and so that everyone has the opportunity to keep the desired distance from others. This is the main reason for adding more departures.”
29 June
Ireland
Aer Rianta International (ARI) today reopened its stores under The Loop brand at Dublin Airport. They have not traded since mid-March, when the government ordered the closure of all non-essential retail to contain the spread of coronavirus. The openings will be followed by more in coming days across the ARI network, at Cork, Muscat and Beirut airports.
Click here for the full story.
France
After 13 weeks closed, Paris Aéroport Orly reopened on Friday 26 June. The first flight to take off was a Transavia service to Porto.
As part of the gradual resumption of traffic, said Groupe ADP, around 70 flights operated last Friday on domestic (mainly Air Corsica), Schengen (Transavia) and overseas routes (the latter with Corsair International, Air Caraïbes and French bee). More than 8,000 passengers used the airport on its first day back in business. Click on the video below for footage of the return to service.
UAE
Emirates continues to expand its route network as travel restrictions ease, announcing today that it will re-start passenger flights to Cairo, Tunis (both from 1 July), Glasgow (from 15 July) and Malé (from 16 July).
This will bring Emirates’ network to 52 destinations in July through its Dubai hub. The company said it will continue to grow its network serving the Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Americas.
Customers can also travel to Dubai following the announcement last week that the city will be open to business and leisure visitors from 7 July.
International
Dufry is ramping up its store operations around the world amid eased travel restrictions, an increase in flight connections, and a boost in airport activity.
In the second half of June, Dufry has reopened or is reopening multiple key operations across various global locations. These include stores at Heathrow Airport Terminal 2; several Spanish airports such as Madrid, Barcelona and Mallorca; Zürich in Switzerland; as well as numerous shops in Cancún, Mexico; Jordan, and the US.
Recognising that the sector leader serves as a bellwether for the fortunes of the travel retail channel. The Moodie Davitt Report is providing exclusive coverage of Dufry’s progressive return to business via a regular new column.
Click here for full details.
26 June
Germany
Terminal 1 at Munich Airport will reopen on 8 July. Operations will initially resume in areas C, D and E.
Most of the airlines that operated in Terminal 1 before it was shut down will return. Only Eurowings, Qatar Airways, Tui Fly, SunExpress, and Pegasus Airlines will remain in Terminal 2 for the time being.
All handling areas that are being reopened have been kitted out with floor markings, protective screens, information posters, hand sanitizer dispensers and other services designed to prevent infection.
Nearly 200 passenger and cargo flights are currently taking off and landing at the airport every day, with the daily passenger numbers up to around 10,000.
In July, Lufthansa, United Airlines, Emirates, and Etihad Airways are set to resume several long-haul routes from Munich. The airport is expecting to see over 250 aircraft movements a day from the start of the month.
Taipei
Passengers travelling with selected airlines are now able to transit through Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport.
The Central Epidemic Command Center has announced that passengers flying with China Airlines, Eva Air and Cathay Pacific can now transit through the airport if their connecting flight is with the same airline and within eight hours of their arrival. Flights to areas of China where COVID-19 continues to spread have been excluded and Mainland Chinese nationals are still barred from transiting through the airport.
Transit passengers must stay in a designated area and remain separate from other airport users, as is currently seen at Singapore Changi Airport.
Deputy Head of the Central Epidemic Command Center Chen Tsung-yen added that these passengers will still be able to access duty-free shopping and food in the waiting area, according to The South China Morning Post.
Germany
Passenger traffic at the two Berlin airports – Schönefeld and Tegel – has doubled in the past week.
Flughafen Berlin said 8,000 passengers are currently being handled every day across the two airports. The airport operator added that it is expecting this number to be well above 10,000 by the beginning of July.
Flughafen Berlin Brandenburg CEO Engelbert Lütke Daldrup said: “All of us, including the airlines and Berlin’s airports, are noticing a significant increase in the willingness to travel. We are pleased that the airlines have reacted quickly and comprehensively to the lifted travel restrictions in Europe.”
Around 70 destinations are expected to be offered from the two airports this summer.
Alongside the growth in traffic, dining and shopping facilities at both airports are also opening again. At Schönefeld, F&B outlets Almhütte and Quickers are now open, as are Essbahn and the pharmacy at Berlin Tegel, with car rental trading at both airports. Opening hours are still limited and arranged in line with flight times. More services will follow at the beginning of July as flight operations increase.
Turkey
Milas-Bodrum Airport today welcomed its first scheduled international flight following the easing of travel restrictions. A Sunexpress flight from Hannover landed this morning, with further services from Sunexpress, Corendon and Edelweiss planned from other European destinations.
TAV Milas-Bodrum Operation Coordinator Iclal Kayaoglu said: “Domestic flights have been going on since the beginning of the month, thanks to the comprehensive precautions we took in collaboration with our stakeholders. We hope that the international flights continue to increase and look forward to welcoming more guests from all over the world.”
Germany
Frankfurt Airport has reported rising passenger volumes, with flights to many popular destinations having resumed.
Ahead of the summer holidays beginning in many German states next week, the airport has released a video detailing the measures it has taken to protect passengers as travel picks up.
Flights from Frankfurt to popular summer destinations, as well as some long-haul locations, are picking up. Fraport Head of Service Quality Thomas Kirner commented: “The approach that our airport and the airlines are taking to mitigate the risk of infection has been designed with this trend in mind.
“By requiring everyone to wear face coverings and implementing many other measures, we’ve paved the way for vacationers to safely begin their trips. There’s no need for anyone to miss out on their well-deserved holidays; like everywhere else these days, they just have to follow the rules.”
UAE
Dubai-based airline flydubai is to restart flights on 7 July. It will initially serve 24 destinations, climbing to 66 over the Summer.
Chief Commercial Officer Hamad Obaidalla said: “We welcome a return to service in a safe and measured way. We have redesigned our passenger journey that is built upon existing high standards to minimise the risk of transmission of COVID-19 and we can now bring people together once again. This, along with the clear and simple guidelines set out by the authorities means it’s the perfect time to return to the skies.”
From next month flydubai will operate services to the following destinations, subject to government approvals: Addis Ababa, Alexandria, Almaty, Amman, Baku, Beirut, Belgrade, Bucharest, Dubrovnik, Esfahan, Juba, Kabul, Khartoum, Kiev, Krakow, Lar, Nur-Sultan, Prague, Sarajevo, Shiraz, Sofia, Tbilisi, Tehran and Yerevan.
USA
Las Vegas McCarran International Airport is planning a sharp increase in flight numbers over the Summer as business returns to the region. Since casinos reopened on 4 June, said the airport company, domestic tourism demand has surged.
By August, scheduled daily flight arrivals into Las Vegas is slated to increase to more than 330. That compared to 11 at the lowest point of travel during the pandemic, In May, the top ten domestic carriers combined to average 145 scheduled arrivals daily. In June that total rose to nearly 200, and in July it will exceed 280 per day.
Southwest Airlines will see the largest jump in summer service, averaging 156 daily arrivals in August compared to 87 in May. Delta Air Lines will increase from an average of ten arrivals a day in May to 32 in August.
Most of the increases will come from US routes but flights from selected foreign markets, led by Canada and Mexico, are expected to follow as restrictions are lifted.
“McCarran International Airport is at the forefront of the Las Vegas comeback story,” said Clark County Director of Aviation Rosemary Vassiliadis. “The significant investment in increased scheduling shows the confidence our airline partners have in travellers’ demand to return to our incredible destination, and it underscores the hard work being done to mitigate the spread of COVID-19 here at the airport.”
25 June
Thailand
Phuket Hotels Association and global hospitality branding agency QUO have partnered to unveil a destination recovery campaign to boost tourism in Phuket.
The ‘Imagine Phuket’ campaign showcases the myriad of sights, sounds, and flavours of Phuket to inspire travellers to visit the island. It is one of the first islands in Asia to embark on such a significant relaunch initiative.
The campaign brings together 75 of Phuket’s leading hospitality players to inspire travellers to visit Phuket once again.
Phuket Hotels Association President Anthony Lark commented, “Phuket is the leading resort destination in Asia and one of the most-loved resort destinations anywhere in the world. Our members have come together with QUO to create a campaign, in both English and Thai, to evoke the soul of the destination.”
“The Imagine Phuket video, and integrated social media campaign, are designed to drive emotion,” added QUO CEO David Keen. “We know that there is a massive desire to travel again, both locally and internationally. Our intent is to bring the story back to Phuket.”
Phuket’s hospitality sector has been severely impacted by the pandemic. The island has already lost THB120 billion (US$3.9 million) worth of income due to the slump in tourism, with losses expected to more than double by year end if the situation doesn’t improve.
PHA: Imagine Phuket Eng from QUO on Vimeo.
Scandinavia
All seven Viking Line vessels will have returned to passenger service from 2 July, with the Mariella and Cinderella ships returning to duty on this date.
Mariella will sail the Helsinki–Tallinn route; Cinderella will operate Stockholm–Mariehamn waters, as well as special cruises from Stockholm to Visby.
“It is such a joy to see people returning to our ships. Our passengers have expressed their satisfaction with our range of timetable options. Holidays in the surrounding countries remain very popular and we believe that this will be a busy summer,” Viking Line Vice President of Sales and Marketing Kaj Takolander said.
The ferry company added that its pre-order option, which allows for retail purchases to be delivered directly to cars or picked up onboard, is increasing in popularity.
US
Hawaii has said arrivals from out of state will no longer have to quarantine on arrival from August if they have a valid COVID-19 negative test.
All arrivals in the archipelago have been subject to a 14-day quarantine since March, but from 1 August they will be able to avoid this if they have tested negative 72 hours before their arrival.
“The health of our community continues to be our primary focus and priority,” the Governor of Hawaii, David Ige, said. “This multi-layered screening process allows travellers to return and allows us to continue to protect the health and safety of our community.”
Malaysia
Malaysia Airlines will reopen its Golden Lounge network from 1 July as the carrier prepares to resume international flights from next month.
The initial schedule will feature weekly flights from Kuala Lumpur to Chennai, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Kochi, Sri Lanka, Taipei, Guangzhou, Sydney, Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane and Surabaya.
It will fly twice weekly to Dhaka, Kathmandu, London, Osaka, Narita, Incheon, Hong Kong, Melbourne, Sydney, Perth, Denpansar and Phuket.
Malaysia Airlines will fly three times a week to Manila, four times to Jakarta and Bangkok and five times to Singapore.
The inflight dining service will be modified to limit contact between cabin crew and passengers, said the airline, but will be available for all cabin classes. Duty free services will remain suspended for the time being.
24 June
Montenegro
JSC Airports of Montenegro Chief Executive Officer Danilo Orlandić reports that Montenegro has introduced a new methodology for further border opening. The country thus maintains its distinctive policy of providing the highest-degree protection from #COVID-19 both for its citizens and tourists. The protocol is effective Sunday, 21 June at 24:00.
Germany
Passenger traffic at Berlin Schönefeld and Tegel airports has more than doubled compared to last week, to around 8,000 per day. The move follows the lifting of a travel warning for EU countries last week, with capacity added by airline partners.
As the holiday seasons begins, Schönefeld and Tegel are offering flights to 52 destinations in 31 countries. By the beginning of July the number of daily guests is expected to reach well over 10,000 and around 70 destinations are expected to be offered from Berlin’s airports this summer.
Asia
AirAsia sold 41,000 seats yesterday (23 June), the highest in a single day since travel restrictions were introduced in the airline’s markets.
AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes said: “We are encouraged by this positive trend and we foresee this will continue in the coming weeks.”
Traffic for the airline’s website has grown +170% in recent weeks. The most popular routes included Kota Kinabalu and Kuching to Kuala Lumpur for Malaysia; Bangkok to Chiang Mai and Hat Yai for Thailand; Manila to Puerto Princesa and Davao for the Philippines; Delhi to Srinagar, and Bengaluru to Hyderabad for India; and Jakarta to Denpasar and Medan for Indonesia.
“We are aiming to increase our flight frequencies to around 50% of our pre-COVID operations and we look forward to resuming all domestic routes in the coming weeks and months to cater to the increasing demand. Currently, we are operating 152 daily flights across the region,” Fernandes added.
“We look forward to the reopening of international borders in recognition of the fact that air transport provides the connectivity that is essential for the resumption of economic activities and the global recovery efforts.”
UK
KLM will resume flights from London City Airport on 13 July, restoring the popular connection between Amsterdam and London. Last year, Amsterdam was the most popular route at the central London airport, with 664,621 passengers flying between the two locations, up +6.9% year-on-year (the route was served by up to three airlines, including KLM).
This positive news follows the recent confirmation of BA CityFlyer’s first returning routes at London City, and the resumption of flights on Sunday.
Austria
Gebr Heinemann this week reopened its operation at Vienna Airport Terminal 3 after 98 days of lockdown.
Country Director Roman Koch offered an upbeat message to colleagues and business partners.
“We are immensely proud of our team that has shown a tremendous amount of team spirit during this challenging time,” he said. “We are now giving our best to gradually get back to where we used to stand. It will be a long walk requiring a lot of endeavour and perseverance. However, we are positive and hopeful that step by step we will successfully move forward.”
He added: “For the months to come, only Terminal 3 will be in operation, hence our focus will be on our shops in that area while our shops in Terminal 2 will be partly reconstructed.”
Japan/Italy
Good news from DFS: the world’s leading luxury travel retailer reopened its T Galleria by DFS on the Japanese island of Okinawa at the weekend and will reopen the acclaimed T Fondaco dei Tedeschi by DFS in Venice on 1 July. Click here for full story.
23 June
Latin America
Airports Council International Latin America and Caribbean (ACI LAC) Director General Rafael Echevarne offered an up-to-date snapshot of planned travel reopenings across the region during a webinar hosted by South American duty free association ASUTIL. See chart below.
Mexico is the only country open for all travel in and out, he noted. Chile and Brazil have remained open for domestic travel, while Ecuador is allowing inbound travellers with a 14-day quarantine in place.
ACI LAC is forecasting recovery of regional traffic to 2019 levels by 2023.
Full story coming soon.
Ireland
Shannon Airport, the birthplace of duty free in 1947, will reopen to flights from 1 July. Ryanair is due to restart 16 services to these destinations: Alicante, Barcelona-Reus, Faro, Fuerteventura, Kaunas, Krakow, Lanzarote, London Gatwick, London Stansted, Malaga, Manchester, Palma, Tenerife, Warsaw, Wroclaw and Vienna.
Shannon Airport recommends that all passengers wear a face covering when inside the airport terminal building. Only travellers should enter the building.
Protective glass screens have been erected at customer facing areas throughout the terminal including at check-in, customer service desks, security screening areas, retail and at boarding gates.
Passengers are requested to limit the use of cash in shops, bars and restaurants, with contactless payments the preferred choice across all outlets as they reopen. Socially distanced seating will be in place. Physical distancing queueing will be in place when shopping and ordering food at the airport. Once food orders are placed, customers will return to their seats and their orders will be delivered to their tables.
International
Research by the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) has found that 22% of destinations worldwide have started to ease restrictions for tourists.
The UNWTO research shows 48 countries have now started to open up; this is a large increase compared to the seven countries that had eased restrictions as of 18 May. The majority of places that are more open to tourists are in Europe, where 37 of the 48 destinations are located.
However, 65% of all destinations worldwide (141 locations) still have their borders completely closed to international tourism.
UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili said: “This latest overview of global travel restrictions shows that a growing numbers of destinations are beginning to ease the restrictions they introduced in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This is being done in a responsible and measured way.
“However, this crisis is not over. UNWTO will continue to work with our member states around the world to mitigate the impact of the pandemic and to ensure that, when the time is right, tourism can help drive a responsible and sustainable recover.”
Ireland
The Irish Task Force for Aviation Recovery has called on government to ease travel restrictions and remove the 14-day quarantine for inbound travellers by 1 July.
The Task Force was set up by the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport to examine proposals to protect the Irish aviation industry.
Its interim report calls for “clarity” about what will be required to ease the restrictions on non-essential travel to and from Ireland. Ideally, these restrictions should be eased by 1 July, the report noted.
It added: “Much of the Irish achievement and leadership in aviation is now imperilled by the economic impact of Covid-19. Deeper and lasting damage is imminent. Without clear visibility on government intentions as regards economic coexistence with the virus, the national aviation industry is struggling to plan the management and retention of its assets, including workforce, aircraft, routes and physical infrastructures.”
DAA, which operates Dublin and Cork airports, welcomed the publication. “Tourism, trade and foreign direct investment are key elements of the Irish economy and over the medium-term, aviation will play a major role in helping the Irish economy to begin to recover from the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said DAA Chief Executive Dalton Philips.
US/China
Delta Air Lines has become the first US airline to announce resumed travel connecting China with the US since a temporary suspension was put in place in February.
In a welcome move, the airline will restart its service between Seattle–Tacoma and Shanghai Pudong airports via Incheon in South Korea on 25 June. This will at first operate twice a week. Delta added it is planning to also resume its service from Detroit to Shanghai via Incheon in July.
Delta Air Lines President – Greater China and Singapore Wong Hong said: “We are excited to resume our services between the US and China, as economic and social activities start to recover. With a mission to connect the world, Delta is committed to getting our customers to their destinations safely and confidently, especially at this critical time.”
Europe
A survey of travellers conducted by SchengenVisaInfo.com shows that 80% are planning to travel to the Schengen Area within the first three months of border reopening. Most will travel for tourism purposes.
The survey, undertaken from 1 to 10 June, had 2,636 responses from 87 countries, both within and beyond the EU.
For almost three months, non-EU/EEA citizens have been ineligible to enter the Schengen Area, due to an entry ban introduced by the Member States in March, amid the coronavirus outbreak in Europe. Many borders were also closed to travellers within the region.
With borders reopening, of those that now plan to travel into or within the Schengen region, 62.5% said they would aim to do so within one month of restrictions easing. Germany and France top the list of Schengen countries that travellers plan to visit.
Of the travellers surveyed, 46.4% do not need a visa to enter the Schengen Area, as they are nationals of one of the 62 countries under the Schengen visa-free regime.
Other planning to travel either hold a valid Schengen visa or hope to apply for one to travel within a short timeframe.
Taipei
Business travellers from 15 territories are now permitted to enter Taiwan.
The Central Epidemic Command Center has approved entry for travellers from New Zealand, Australia, Macau, Palau, Fiji, Brunei, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Thailand, Mongolia, Bhutan, South Korea, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore, effective yesterday (22 June).
Business travellers from these destinations will be allowed entry for up to three-months if they provide a letter of invitation, travel itinerary and evidence of a negative COVID-19 test from the past 72 hours.
Arrivals from these countries will still be required to quarantine. Those from low-risk territories (New Zealand, Australia, Macau, Palau, Fiji, Brunei, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Thailand, Mongolia and Bhutan) can leave quarantine if they test negative after five days.
Singapore
Customers flying from a number of Asia Pacific destinations with Singapore Airlines and its subsidiaries can now make return trips that transit through Singapore Changi Airport.
As of yesterday (22 June), those travelling to and from certain destinations in Australia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand can now transit in Changi on return trips. This widens the prospect for tourism between the approved locations.
Passengers are still only permitted to transit in Changi for outbound flights to other destinations in the Singapore Airlines network. For example, return trips for Tokyo-Singapore-Sydney can be booked, but only one-way trips are available for Tokyo-Singapore-Copenhagen journeys.
As reported, Changi Airport Group has revealed a dedicated area that will ensure transit passengers do not mix with other passengers. In the transit space, travellers can make duty free purchases using a concierge service and have the products delivered to the transit area. Products ordered on the iShopChangi ecommerce service can also be delivered.
UK
HMS Host International reopened its acclaimed Leon restaurant at Heathrow Airport Terminal 2 yesterday.
“It gives me great pleasure to announce the reopening of our Leon restaurant in Terminal 2 at Heathrow airport today,” said HMSHost International CEO Walter Seib.
“More good news to share is that it looks like we are the joint first hospitality business to open in an airport airside in the UK. Well done to Andre our Hospitality Manager; Rob, our Store Manager; and the entire team in Leon LHR, to make this a very successful (and safe) reopening.”
New Zealand/China
UAE
International
Courtesy of MSC Cruise Head of Retail Adrian Pittaway, we publish welcome news of how the cruiseline is planning an ambitious and adapted winter season 20/21. “We are bringing back 14 ships into service right across the globe, allowing us to once again deliver our memorable retail experiences,” he said.
“We will have four ships in South America, four in the Caribbean (including launching in Port Canaveral), two in South Africa, one in Mediterranean, one in the Middle East, one in Asia and one incredible world cruise.
“Cruise retail is coming back soon.”
22 June
Qatar
Qatar Airways has further boosted its global network by reintroducing flights to Budapest, Dar es Salaam, Dhaka, Istanbul and New York in the past week. The Doha-based airline now operates over 270 weekly flights to more than 45 destinations.
Qatar Airways said that bookings continue to rise as travel restrictions ease worldwide. To reflect this, it is increasing the frequency of its services to the following destinations:
- Athens (increased from three weekly to daily flights)
- Dallas-Fort Worth (increased from three weekly to daily flights)
- Dublin (increased from five weekly to daily flights)
- Islamabad (now operating two daily flights)
- Jakarta (increased from four weekly to daily flights)
- Karachi (now operating two daily flights)
- Lahore (now operating two daily flights)
- Milan (increased from five weekly to daily flights)
- Rome (increased from six weekly to daily flights)
- Singapore (increasing from three weekly to daily flights)
As reported, Qatar Airways has maintained a robust network throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. The airline accumulated over 1.3 billion revenue passenger kilometres (RPK) during April – more than triple the tally of its nearest competitor.
UK
Dufry-owned World Duty Free has reopened after a three-month shutdown. Terminal Manager Jamie Anderson posted the news on LinkedIn, saying, “After a long week last week preparing for our main store at LHR T2 to re-open, we pulled the shutters back at 5am this morning. First sale this morning was to a lady that spent £100 on Shiseido at 5.10am.
“We have five flights to Doha, Dubai and Abu Dhabi this morning and a charter to Xi’an in China, two flights to Korea and Air India to Hyderabad this evening – a total of over 60 flights departing today. Well done to all the team involved in the reopening.”
UK
Virgin Atlantic has revealed its plan to restart passenger flights, with a limited schedule from 20 July and then a wider range of services from 1 August.
Chief Commercial Officer Juha Jarvinen said: “As countries around the world begin to relax travel restrictions, we look forward to welcoming our customers back onboard and flying them safely to many destinations across our network. From 20 July we are planning to resume some services and then from 1 August onwards, we will resume passenger flying to 17 additional destinations around the world including Tel Aviv, Miami, Lagos and San Francisco.”
Jarvinen called on the UK government to review its 14-day quarantine policy for visitors, and urged “a multi-layered approach of public health and screening measures, including air bridges, which will support a successful and safe restart of international air travel.”
Virgin Atlantic has delayed the restart of its London Heathrow to Orlando service to 24 August. Seasonal services from Glasgow and Belfast to Orlando will resume for selected dates in summer 2021. The airline said it expects more flights to resume in September and October.
As reported, Virgin Atlantic has exited London Gatwick Airport and will operate from Heathrow and Manchester in the UK as part of its cost-cutting response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
UAE
Dubai will welcome tourists and visitors from overseas from 7 July, the Supreme Committee of Crisis and Disaster Management has announced.
The committee added that from today (22 June) foreign nationals holding resident visas issued in Dubai will be able to return to the emirate. Citizens and residents of Dubai will also be allowed to travel to any destination willing to receive them from 23 June.
International tourists travelling to Dubai from 7 July will need to fill in a Health Declaration Form before boarding and test negative for COVID-19 96 hours ahead of departure. They will also be subject to thermal screening on arrival.
Dubai is Open. We are ready to welcome business visitors and tourists to our city and country in July. pic.twitter.com/Q91vbEEidf
— HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum (@HHAhmedBinSaeed) June 22, 2020
Emirates Chairman and Chief Executive HH Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum said: “This is a strong affirmation of Dubai’s readiness to resume aviation and economic activity after comprehensive planning, review, and preparation.
“We are confident that the multi-layered measures that have been put in place in the air, on the ground, and throughout our city, enables us to mitigate risks of infection spread and manage any required response effectively.”
He added: “Currently, Emirates connects Dubai to 40 cities, and with the latest directives, we have the opportunity to expand our network and offer additional destinations, which will be communicated in the coming days.”
Cyprus
Hermes Airports, which operates Larnaca International Airport and Paphos International Airport, has moved to phase B of its recovery plan.
The two busiest airports in Cyprus are now connected to further countries. These have been placed in Category A, B or C.
The Category A countries are Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, North Korea, Slovakia, Slovenia and Switzerland. Travellers from these destinations will have to complete a Passenger Locator Form.
Arrivals from Category B countries (Belgium, France, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Lebanon, Jordan, Netherlands, Spain, Poland, Romania and the UAE) will need to complete the same form and prove they have tested negative for COVID-19 in the past 72 hours.
All other countries are classed as Category C. Only Cypriot citizens, those legally living in Cyprus and persons allowed to enter the country under the Vienna Convention can enter Cyprus from these countries. Arrivals from Category C countries will also need to complete the Passenger Locator Form and prove they have tested negative for COVID-19 in the past 72 hours.
Happening now! First flight of @Ryanair just landed at Pafos Airport…✈️ pic.twitter.com/OxrY1HMBpU
— Cyprus Airports (@CyprusAeropolis) June 21, 2020
Hermes Airports CEO Eleni Kaloyirou said: “This is a very different restart, after a period of time which was unknown for all of us. Through the measures which are in effect as of 9 June at Larnaca and Paphos airports, we aim to make passengers feel safe and secure during their journey via the airports. At the same time, with the restoration to a large extent of the flight schedule, we aspire to give Cypriot tourism the necessary drive to restart and make up for the time lost.”
Since they reopened as part of the first phase on 9 June, 11,604 passengers have travelled to and from Cyprus through the two airports.
Morocco
The Moroccan government has announced domestic flights will resume on 24 June as lockdown restrictions are marginally eased across the country.
All international flights will remain suspended, with no indication on when these will restart.
France
Nice Côte d’Azur Airport will further accelerate its recovery in July when it will be connected with 79 destinations and Terminal 2 will fully open.
The airport, which has served 19 locations in June, will next month increase its network to 17 destinations in France and 62 internationally.
Aéroports de la Côte d’Azur Chairman of the Board Dominique Thillaud said: “With this flight schedule, Nice Côte d’Azur regains its position as a contributor to the economic dynamism of the area and enables the entire southern region’s residents to travel, as well as tourists, whether for business or leisure, to return to Nice.”
20 June
Ukraine
Alexander Kolomytsev, Deputy Director General at the Gebr Heinemann partnership in Ukraine, BFGH Travel Retail, reports that the stores at Boryspil International, Igor Sikorsky Kyiv International and Odessa International airports have reopened.
“First steps to recovery!” he writes. “The recovery path is hard and slow, but we returned stronger and prepared, proud and brand new, with an increased liquor, tobacco and confectionery Premium Taste shop in KBP (Boryspil International). We welcome all passengers of Ukraine to enjoy the modern advanced ambience of the shop, selected products and attractive price offers.”
19 June – #TimeForTravel
Estonia
Baltic Sea cruise-ferry company Tallink has extended the number of services on its Tallinn-Turku route this Summer due to strong demand, a move that should also boost the crucial onboard revenue shopping channel.
The new temporary route, served by the Baltic Queen vessel, was only launched on Monday but a surge in bookings has led to the company adding 12 more return trips in late July and early August.
Importantly for Tallink’s onboard retail business, all departures will make a short stopover in the Åland Islands, allowing passengers the opportunity for tax free shopping during the trip.
Tallink Grupp CEO Paavo Nõgene said: “The popularity of the Tallinn-Turku route shows that our customers have really been looking forward to us opening this route. They are using this opportunity to travel and discover Tallinn and Estonia directly from the Turku area, or to travel directly from Tallinn to Muumin World, Naantali resort or to Western Finland in general.
“Since the interest is significant and we don’t want to pack the trips too full, we have decided to add extra departures to the route to offer everyone a spacious and comfortable journey. We are very pleased that there is such a great interest in travelling between our neighbouring countries and we look forward to seeing everyone onboard.”
Malta
Malta International Airport will open on 1 July, with flights to selected destinations initially (see also 17 June news). These include Germany, Austria, Sicily, Cyprus, Switzerland, Iceland, Slovakia, Norway, Denmark, Hungary, Finland, Ireland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Luxembourg and Czech Republic. In recent days this list has been extended to include France (selected locations), Italy (selected locations), Spain (selected locations), Poland, Greece and Croatia. Restrictions on all other flight destinations will be lifted on 15 July, Prime Minister Robert Abela has confirmed.
The Ministry for Tourism and Consumer Protection and the Malta Tourism Authority plan a “spectacular event” including a fireworks display on 1 July to coincide with the reopening of the airport to commercial flights.
Minister for Tourism and Consumer Protection Julia Farrugia Portelli said: “Many were sceptical that we could arrive at this stage this quickly, but we managed, thanks to the efforts of countless people. On 1 July we shall celebrate reaching this goal in the context of our promise that there will be a summer. We started delivering on that promise and our commitment towards this goal takes on a new dimension.”
Germany
Frankfurt Airport will be connected with 175 destinations by the end of June.
The German airport has reported that in the number of weekly flights to Mediterranean holiday destinations has been increasing in the second half of June. Weekly connections to Mallorca have jumped from six to 26, and the Greek islands will be served by the airport for the first time since March from 29 June.
Of the 175 destinations, about 50 of these will be intercontinental routes, with the airport opening up to further locations in the Far East and the Americas.
Frankfurt Airport added that it will continue to process all traffic through Terminal 1.
UK
Scheduled passenger flights from East Midlands Airport will resume on 21 June.
Passengers arriving on the Ryanair flight from Alicante at 15.20 will be the first to step inside the terminal since March.
A total of 16 Ryanair flights to and from the airport are scheduled for before the end of June.
“This is a really positive development,” East Midlands Airport Managing Director Karen Smart said. “I am confident that many people across the region will start using their local airport again for a quick and easy getaway to their favourite holiday destinations when conditions allow.”
