Amadeus: Five trends that will define group travel in 2022
A detailed 24-page report which starts by noting that there are some areas where it is realistically possible to be optimistic about the short and medium term prospects for group travel, indeed a study is cited that suggests group travel demand will exceed 2019 levels by 2024.
It is noted that the size, spend, duration and mix of groups has changed, with a suggestion that going forward groups will be smaller in size and value than was the case in the past.
While there is an expectation that face-to-face activity will reignite, it is recognised that hybrid meetings are now far easier thanks to rapidly developing technology and are likely to remain an option for future events.
While the focus is primarily on the US group travel market it is pointed out that hotels and other hospitality businesses in many parts of the world are finding recruitment extremely challenging at present.
The five trends described in detail within the report are:
- Group travel requirements have changed, with smaller leisure groups set to considerably outstrip large corporate events in 2022
- Lean teams have to do more with less, with smaller sales and operations teams having to handle a higher volume of smaller deals
- Both hybrid and in-person meetings are here to stay, meaning hotels must consider outsourcing delivery of an event’s virtual components to experts in order to free-up in-house staff to delivering on-site elements of the event
- Meeting planner relationships will be (even) more important
- Innovative partnerships are unlocking new potential
At the end of each section discussing the five trends a handy ‘Key trend takeaways’ box is provided.
The report is rounded-off with a short Conclusions section.