New Landscape Report GERMANY - Travel South USA
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New Landscape Report GERMANY
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In fall 2020, Lieb Management was commissioned by Travel South USA to compile a New
Landscape Report, to describe the current state of the Tourism Industry in the German speaking
markets, note important changes due to the Covid-19 pandemic and point out future trends
relevant for travel to the United States and specifically the Southern region. A challenging task
in those quickly changing Corona-times, indeed. But after a second wave of infections since
November 2020, now extensive vaccination campaigns have been launched in German speaking
Europe and the US - and this fact, together with the findings of this study, actually allow us to
look positively into the future.
The United States have been the most popular long-haul destination for our markets before the
Covid-19 pandemic and signs are many, that this fact will not change: Germans, Austrian and
Swiss remain a target group that travels more often, stays longer and spends more. Our economies
are all in a relatively healthy position and go into 2021 confidently. The governments support
people and businesses in a way never seen before. Travel and Tourism were the first sectors
forced to shut down and will be the last to recover. The individual players are hit hard, but “are
still standing”: The large wholesalers are re-structuring, the smaller specialists despite reducing
staff, are partly finding new ways to survive and use the time to re-position and invest in digital
resources. All receive financial support by the government, the effective tool of “short-time-work”
helps to keep bright minds and knowledge in the companies. Destination webinars and agent
trainings saw and still see immense popularity. No one is cutting product and hidden-gems in the
Southern US-States and less-travelled routes might actually benefit in the end.
Travel to the US will continue to be booked with travel agents and tour operators, millions
of “successful” cancellations have shown customers the benefits of these channels. Although
flexibility in booking procedures, sustainability, safety and hygiene concepts in a destination as
well as outdoor experiences massively gain importance, assets like authenticity, hospitality and a
good value for price, will stay key for success. Personal trade meetings and travel shows remain
important and cannot replace purely digital happenings.
The media and especially travel publications have seen a huge slump in advertising revenues,
forcing many to pause issues, lay off staff and some to give up. Others re-invented themselves,
expanded their digital offers and came up with new, creative concepts to reach consumers.
Readers surprisingly trust more than ever in traditional journalism may it be newspapers or
magazines, TV or radio, but the pandemic also increased their willingness to pay for digital offers
and got them interested in new forms of communications like podcasts. Social media on the other
hand is stagnating and use compared to other countries is still relatively low. For the United States
having been the most popular long-haul subject for travel editors before Covid-19, recovery will
be steady and all signs point to a very strong demand for US-content in 2021, once travelling
will be possible again.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 2
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The desire to travel is unbroken in the German speaking markets and a large backdrop of long-
haul travel dreams being thawed in 2020 will result in even higher interest in the years to come.
Consumers in Germany however should not be put in tight measures of demographics, in
particular the numerous US-fans scattered throughout all age groups, and a themed approach
seems more promising. Especially because the advantages of the Southern-US states, such as
magnificent nature, authentic experiences, exciting culture and history and delicious food,
match so well with the general preferences our consumers have and are looking for in a vacation
destination.
One insight that we encountered again and again in all areas of this study was how important a
continuous presence in the market is: How much it is appreciated by tour operators and the media
in these times of crisis when a destination remains present. All states with own representation
on the German market, which are members of the Travel South association, are still active,
maybe with reduced budget, but they still “fly the flag”. This strengthens the ties and will pay off
in the future for sure, also for the region as such. Investments in our markets will continue to be
worthwhile in the future and we look forward to supporting Travel South USA with our expertise
wherever possible.
With this in mind, we thank Travel South USA for their trust and reiterate our confidence that the
overall situation will improve soon. Political decisions to lift travel restrictions will obviously play
a role, but the recently launched vaccination campaigns on both sides of the pond make the light
at the end of the tunnel shine ever stronger.
Thank you!
Your Lieb Management Team
Munich, January 15, 2021
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 3
Overview
05 SWOT Analysis
06 Factors Affecting Travel
17 Travel Industry Landscape
42 Media Landscape
60 Social Media & Influencers
SWOT ANALYSIS – SOUTHERN STATES USA
STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES
✓ Great combination of history, culture ✓ Too much variety in travel themes – selling
and nature point “South” doesn’t fit for all states as the
✓ Good accessibility with various direct differences between states are significant
flights ✓ Limited travel season / travel season vary
✓ USPs with wide known attributes such throughout the states
as Southern music, food and hospitality ✓ Long distances to cover everything – the
✓ Lots of variety in travel themes/routes region has the size of Europe
✓ Excellent value for money – less ✓ Some states and states are world-renowned,
expensive than other US areas others almost unknown to Germans
✓ Many of the Southern states don’t have much
product in TOs portfolio
✓ Infrastructure for trains and RV travel
expandable
SWOT ANALYSIS
Southern States USA
OPPORTUNITIES THREATS
✓ Create new product with TOs ✓ Political situations / BLM protests
✓ Hidden-jewel stories are assets for ✓ Covid-19
media ✓ Competitor states / regions
✓ Visitors can easily avoid mass-tourism ✓ Airlines might cut their connections to just
post Corona established destinations; will it be logistically
✓ Develop more infrastructure for RV possible to trips with different inbound/
travel, which will be in high demand outbound?
post Corona ✓ Other regions have better infrastructure for
✓ Visitors can easily avoid mass-tourism most likely growing popular RV travel
post Corona ✓ Hurricanes might discourage to travel to
✓ Interesting for USA-lovers/repeaters southern states
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 5
Factors Affecting Travel
OVERVIEW ECONOMY AND FORECAST 2021
Germany
Th
e coronavirus pandemic has led Germany’s economy – like the global economy – into a
recession. However, the 2020 interim projection, which was published in early September
by the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, shows that the worst fears have
not materialized and that the economy is recovering faster than expected. The recession in
Germany has already bottomed out. The economic recovery process has been continuing,
but the pandemic situation poses a risk. Following a historic 9.8 percent drop in GDP in Q2,
the German economy experienced a palpable recovery in Q3, growing by 8.5 percent. This
allowed economic output to reach approx. 96 percent of the level posted in Q4 2019, before
the outbreak of the pandemic. Gainful activity and employment subject to social security
contributions grew, whereas unemployment decreased markedly in November. Looking
forward, however, the outlook is less bright. The ifo business climate softened in November
and is now slightly negative, overall. The balance was tipped by the business expectations,
which, like export expectations, are now considerably gloomier. The partial lockdown in force
since the beginning of November and the additional measures adopted with a view to limiting
social contacts mainly hit the hospitality sector and business in the fields of leisure and
tourism. Now that a hard lockdown has been put in place, other sectors are also affected. The
cautious export expectations chiefly reflect the force of the second pandemic wave that has hit
a number of European countries. Altogether, it is likely that economic growth in Germany in
Q4 will be much dampened (source www.bmwi.de)
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 7
OVERVIEW ECONOMY AND FORECAST 2021
Germany
Th
e German Council of Economic Experts (GCEE) forecasts the real gross domestic product
(GDP) to decline by 6.5 percent in 2020 (6.9 percent calendar-adjusted). For 2021, it expects
positive growth rates of 4.9 percent (also 4.9 percent calendar-adjusted). Consequently,
GDP is unlikely to return to its pre-pandemic level before 2022. The unemployment rate will
continue to rise in the coming months and will only start to decline in the course of 2021.
(source: www.sachverstaendigenrat-wirtschaft.de)
Th
e travel industry is not expected to return to normalcy before 2023: The Statista Mobility
Market Outlook estimates the turnover of the German travel industry at around 26 billion
euros last year - that is 56 percent less than in 2019. Corona hit the cruise industry and
package tour providers the hardest. For the current year, the analysts still expect a third less
turnover compared to the pre-crisis level. It is only for 2023 that the forecast assumes a more
or less normal travel and tourism turnover again (source: statista.com)
Pauschalurlaub = package Figures in billions of euros.
tours (Source: statista.com)
Hotels = Hotels
Wohnungen = Apartments
Kreuzfahrten = Cruises
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 8
OVERVIEW ECONOMY AND FORECAST 2021
SWITZERLAND & AUSTRIA
Switzerland
A
fter a decline of 1.7 percent in the first quarter and 7 percent in the second quarter, the Swiss
GDP grew by 7.2 percent QoQ in the third, thanks to the lifting of restrictions put in place to
combat the coronavirus pandemic. This is better than the consensus expectation. At the end
of the third quarter, Swiss GDP was 2 percent below its pre-crisis level. The strong rise in GDP
is mainly due to household spending, which increased by 11.9 percent over one quarter to
reach 98.6 percent of its pre-crisis level. Investment in capital goods (+8.8 percent QoQ) and
construction (+5.1 percent QoQ) also rebounded strongly. Construction even moved above
its pre-crisis level. Strong domestic demand allowed imports of goods and services to rebound
strongly (+11.2 and +9.9 percent QoQ, respectively). However, exports did not rebound as
strongly. While exports of non-valuable goods rose by 6.9 percent in one quarter, exports
of services increased by only 1.4 percent. This is due to the much lower number of foreign
tourists visiting Switzerland this summer than in other years. All in all, a slightly negative
quarterly growth in the fourth quarter of 2020 is expected. For 2020 as a whole, a contraction
of 3.2 percent of GDP is expected. The recovery in 2021 should be solid, mainly in the second
half of the year once the Covid vaccine eliminates any risk of a third wave of the pandemic.
According to forecasts, a growth of 3.1 percent for the year 2021 as a whole is expected
(source: https://think.ing.com)
Austria
Th
e economy should have emerged from recession in the third quarter. Industrial output
growth accelerated in July–August—despite dipping in August—while manufacturing
operating conditions improved markedly in the quarter as a whole. Moreover, business
confidence—despite remaining in pessimistic territory—rose strongly in the quarter, while
consumer confidence turned less sour in the same period, boding well for household
spending. Looking at Q4, economic activity will likely be dented by new restrictive measures
announced in mid-October amid a surge in new coronavirus cases. Meanwhile, on 14
October, the government tabled the 2021 draft budget, which will see greater spending on
climate issues, despite a projected fiscal deficit of 6.3 percent of GDP due to the fallout from
the pandemic. However, the budget does not include promised tax reform measures. After a
record hit to GDP this year, the economy is forecasted to recover notably in 2021 as domestic
and external demand strengthen. FocusEconomics panelists forecast a GDP growth of 4.7
percent in 2021, which is down 0.1 percentage points from last month, and 3.0 percent in 2022
(source: www.focus-economics.com)
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 9
GLOBAL INDUSTRY TRENDS
What is Being Booked
W
ith hardly any destinations open for tourists at present, prospects for next year remain
unpredictable. Sales revenues for winter 2020/21 (running until next April) are down by
more than 70 percent at present, the TDA figures showed. However, the DRV optimistically
referred to “the first slight signs of hope” for summer 2021 following news that COVID-19
vaccines will start to become available in the coming months. DRV president Norbert Fiebig
said: “We also expect a catch-up effect as lots of people weren’t able to go on holiday this year
and postponed it until 2021.” Advance bookings for next summer are showing higher demand
for the western Mediterranean as well as for long-haul destinations, he pointed out. But the
association accepts it will take time before the German travel industry can hope to get back
to the record levels of 2019. “For 2021, we are cautiously optimistic that about 50-60 percent
of the previous revenue levels of about €36 billion for the organized travel market can be
achieved,” Fiebig said (source www.fvw.com)
M
any tour operators stated that bookings are coming in, also to the US, due to the relaxed
cancellation conditions all tour operators are offering. However, it is very uncertain whether
these trips are feasible. Many Germans plan for this year rather vacation in Germany or in
nearby European countries, as long as it is not
clear which countries can be traveled
Example for marketing activities in market:
G
ermany and the UK are the two pilot markets
in which Destination Canada is boosting
inbound travel for 2021. Together with specialist
tour operators, the marketing organization
is targeting people interested in Canada and
customers whose planned or already booked
trip could not take place in 2020. The interest in
Canada travel in 2021 is big, as tour operators
unanimously confirm. Destination Canada
has therefore already launched the first end-
customer advertising in the two pilot markets
of UK and Germany. In the fourth quarter of
2020, extensive cross-channel campaigns were
set up with the key accounts America Unlimited,
CANUSA Touristik, CRD Touristik and SK
Touristik
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 10VIEWS ON TRAVEL TO THE US
Many US-specialist tour operators in the German speaking market informed us, that their
clients are very interested in travelling to the US again: Especially regular customers can’t
wait for the travel ban to be lifted and would travel rather sooner than later, despite any possible
Covid-19 restrictions. Tour operators see recent developments regarding the elections and a new
administration as additional positive signs.
It is not yet determined if the events of January 6 have any impact on the views of the German
speaking clients and might affect travel plans. Experiences in the past show, that political events in
a destination do not influence the intention to travel for longer. The memory of travelers is very
short if the attractiveness of the destination does not change in general, whether it is a natural
disaster or political unrest. The best examples are Turkey, Egypt, Thailand and Sri Lanka.
Twice in 2020, IPK International
conducted a special survey on
international travel behavior in
times of the Corona pandemic
with the participation of ITB Berlin.
Based on population-representative
surveys, this study examines
the influence and impact of the
Covid-19 pandemic on international
travel behavior in Germany and in
a further 17 markets worldwide.
With regard to the German market
it comes to interesting results:
A
round a third of the Germans surveyed, went abroad in the summer months from June to
August 2020 despite Corona. This puts the Germans well above the European average of
22 percent and the global average of 19 percent
Th
e aspect of “traveling cheaper in Corona times” is not an option for the vast majority
of respondents. This makes it clear that the pandemic has so far at least not had a negative
impact on the travel budget
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 11VIEWS ON TRAVEL TO THE US
A
round 60 percent traveled to a neighboring country, so the car was by far the most popular
means of transport with 63 percent - followed by the airplane with 25 percent and the train
with 12 percent. When asked about their experience of traveling abroad in times of Corona,
66 percent of Germans said that it was “better than expected”
Th
e intention of Germans to travel abroad in the next twelve months has risen again in
November compared with the June survey, at six percent, and is once again well above the
European and global average. Many of those who still stated in June that traveling abroad was
out of the question, are gradually returning to the circle of those willing to travel
In addition to Germans, the Swiss, Dutch and Austrians in particular are also showing
above-average interest in traveling abroad in the next twelve months
Conclusion:
With vaccination campaigns
well underway in the German-
speaking countries and the
United States, a significant
backlog of demand for
vacations in the U.S. and high
interest among US specialists,
and a generally high propensity
to travel in market, we are
looking confidently to 2021 and beyond.
Taking into account that the United States has been the most popular long-haul destination for
Germans and that this has not changed (see Consumer Sentiment page 76), we expect a slow,
but steady recovery.
Even though the view of vacations in the United States may have been dampened at the moment,
long-term negative consequences are not to be expected. We expect the new administration to
have a positive external impact and also to attract new first-time visitors.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 12STATE OF LONG-HAUL OVERSEAS FLIGHTS
Due to the travel ban issued by the US government in March 2020 and the Covid-19 restrictions
on the German side, air travel has diminished massivly.
Germany
Th
e US airline Delta cut their additional German connections during summer season from
Stuttgart, Munich, Dusseldorf and Berlin. So far there is no news on when they can be
re-established
A
irlines like Condor and Eurowings previously offering connections to secondary airports
important for the Southern USA, like New Orleans were cut.
A
merican Airlines shrinked their flight offers and the important Charlotte, NC flight was
suspended
L ufthansa temporarily suspended numerous long-haul routes from its Munich hub during
the winter 2020/21 season. Flights to Washington DC will no longer be operated. Flights to
San Francisco, Tokyo and Beijing have also been temporarily suspended, but are scheduled to
resume from the beginning of March 2021
Th
e main connections from Germany to the United States by Lufthansa, Delta, United and
American Airlines are operating, but partly with less frequency
N
on-stop flights from Germany to the Southern
States (Please see next slide for an extended
overview)
Delta Air Lines: Frankfurt – Atlanta
Lufthansa: Frankfurt – Washington D.C.
United Airlines: Munich – Washington D.C
Austria and Switzerland
A
ustria’s direct connections to Washington D.C.
were reduced. For Switzerland, the Delta connection
Zurich-Atlanta operated only during summer season,
there is not reliable information yet, weather it will be
resumed in 2021.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 13STATE OF LONG-HAUL OVERSEAS FLIGHTS
DELTA Airlines DIRECT AMERICAN Airlines DIRECT
ATL – FRA Operating 6x a week CLT – FRA Suspended until further notice
ATL – MUC Suspended until further notice CLT – MUC Suspended until further notice
ATL – DUS Suspended until further notice DFW – FRA Operating daily
ATL – STR Suspended until further notice DFW – MUC Suspended until further notice
ATL – VIE Suspended until further notice DFW – BER Suspended until further notice
ATL – ZRH Suspended until further notice DFW – VIE Suspended until further notice
ATL – GVA Suspended until further notice DFW – ZHR Suspended until further notice
RDU – FRA Suspended until further notice DFW – GVA Suspended until further notice
LUFTHANSA DIRECT UNITED Airlines DIRECT
ATL – FRA Suspended until further notice ORD – FRA Operating daily
ORD – FRA Operating daily IAD – FRA Operating daily
IAD – MUC Bookable – IAD – MUC Bookable – codeshare with LH
codeshare with UNITED
IAH – FRA Bookable – IAD – VIE Suspended until further notice
codeshare with UNITED
CLT – FRA Suspended until further notice IAD – ZRH Suspended until further notice
MCO –MUC Suspended until further notice IAH – FRA Bookable – codeshare with LH
MCO – FRA Suspended until further notice IAD – GVA Suspended until further notice
ATL – GVA Suspended until further notice CONDOR
RDU – FRA Suspended until further notice MSY – MUC Suspended until further notice
LEGEND
ATL Atlanta Hartsfield GA RDU Raleigh Durham NC
ORD O‘Hare Chicago IL FRA Frankfurt Germany
DFW Dallas Ft. Worth TX MUC Munich Germany
MCO Orlando FL ZHR Zurich Switzerland
CLT Charlotte NC GVA Geneva Switzerland
IAH Houston, TX BER Berlin Germany
IAD Dulles Washington D.C. VIE Vienna Austria
MSY New Orleans LA STR Stuttgart Germany
DUS Duesseldorf Germany
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 14STATE OF LONG-HAUL OVERSEAS FLIGHTS
Airlines are urging governments to find alternatives to general travel restrictions in the midst of the
second wave of infections in Europe:
W
ith Lufthansa and Alitalia wanting to use rapid antigen tests and the Lufthansa Group in
particular is testing how best to integrate these rapid tests into the passenger travel chain and
had some success recently
A
s of December 19, 2020, Delta Air Lines has started to offer flights between Atlanta and the
Italian capital Rome, where passengers are being tested for the coronavirus several times and
thus not have to go into quarantine after arrival
So far, we only have information of Delta Air Lines, blocking the middle seat:
A
ctually, the middle seat on Delta Air Lines flights was to remain free only until the end of
January 2021. Now, passengers of the US carrier will be able to enjoy a greater distance from
their fellow passengers until at least March 30, 2021. The airline is responding to persistently
high Covid-19 infection rates in the U.S., as well as in other parts of the world, in hopes of
increasing customer confidence in safe air travel
Conclusion:
With the second wave of infection numbers since November
in the German-speaking markets and the fact that winter
is also not the peak season for the United States as a travel
destination, intercontinental flight connections are at a
historic low.
With the prospect of recovery in the summer and fall
months of 2021, we expect a renewed increase in the
number of connections and are hopeful that from 2022
charter carriers such as Condor will again fly to US
destinations.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 15TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS TO THE USA
Since Mid-March 2020 leisure-travelers from the European Schengen-area are not allowed to
enter the United States. If this so called “travel ban” might be lifted by the new
US-administration in the foreseeable future, there is the high chance, that additional safety
and quarantine measures will be implemented. We are confident, that the traditional good and
trustful relations between Germany, Austria and Switzerland on the one side and the United State
on the other, will be revived soon and once again an unbureaucratic entry with the help of ESTA
regulations becomes normal again.
Current entry regulations:
A ban on entry applies to persons who have been in Germany or another country in the Schengen
area within a period of 14 days prior to entry into the USA. Exempt from the entry ban are U.S.
citizens, persons with permanent legal residence in the U.S. (“green card” holders), persons who are
in a close family relationship to a U.S. citizen or a person with permanent legal residence in the U.S.
if certain requirements are met, and diplomats or employees of international organizations.
Further details are published by the U.S. missions in Germany, which may provide information
on additional case-specific exceptions depending on the situation and in accordance with national
interests (Source: USA / Vereinigte Staaten: Reise- und Sicherheitshinweise - Auswärtiges Amt
(auswaertiges-amt.de).
Vice-versa, the USA are currently not on the positive
list of countries from which entry to Germany is
permitted (entry only in exceptional cases). However,
the list is to be updated regularly. Changes may therefore
occur depending on changes in the pandemic situation.
From January 26, all airline passengers entering the
USA will need a negative Corona-test not older than
three days and the CDC recommends a seven-day
quarantine with another test 3-5 days after post-arrival. A well-thought-out testing strategy
could help lift travel restrictions soon.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 16Travel Industry Landscape
OVERVIEW OF TRAVEL TRADE LANDSCAPE
Tour operators continue to play a major role in the German market. There are approximately
3,000 tour operators in Germany. Travel agencies are the most popular medium for tour
operator sales, accounting for around 70 percent of bookings. Evaluations clearly show that in
the past 20 years the share of organized travel via travel agencies/tour operators has increased
significantly. (source: DRV)
In general, Switzerland has a smaller tour operator outbound market compared to Germany.
In Switzerland, travel agencies often act as tour operators themselves by putting together
individual packages for their customers. The top tour operators in Switzerland for 2019 were
Hotelplan Suisse, DER Touristik Suisse (Kuoni, Helvetic Tours, ITS Coop), and TUI Suisse.
Similar to Switzerland, the Austrian market is much smaller than the German market and
Austrian tour operators will work with both outgoing and incoming travelers. However, the
Austrian travel industry is similar to Germany’s, as the top 5 tour operators in Austria are owned
by German tour operators. In 2018, TUI was by far the top tour operator in Austria followed by
Verkehrsbüro Group (Eurotours and Ruefa Reisen) in second place and DER Touristik in third
place.
Th
e largest tour operators in German speaking Europe in 2019 were:
TUI, Thomas Cook, DER Touristik, FTI, Aida Cruises and Alltours
Th
e leading online tour operators in 2019 (by usage) were booking.com (24 percent),
ab-in-den-Urlaub.de (15.3 percent), Expedia (14.6 percent), trivago.de (11.7 percent), and
HolidayCheck.de (10.7 percent) (Source: Statista)
source: DRV
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 18OVERVIEW OF TRAVEL TRADE LANDSCAPE
Tour Operators with US Focus/product:
For travel to the US there are a number of specialists, which due to their focus, higher flexibility
in product display, marketing activities and direct sales are more important for the Southern
States than most of the wholesalers:
Specialists Wholesalers
Canusa Touristik Dertour/Meiers
Receptives: Bonotel, ATI Weltreisen/Kuoni
Receptive: owns New
World Travel
CRD Touristik
Receptives: Bonotel, ATI,
Tourico, GTA, Hotelbeds Explorer Fernreisen
Receptives: Bonotel, ATI,
Tourico,GTA, Hotelbeds
America Unlimited
Receptives: Bonotel, ATI,
Tourico, GTA, Hotelbeds TUI (Germany, Austria,
Switzerland)
Receptives: Bonotel, GTA,
Knecht Reisen Hotelbeds, ATI
(Switzerland)
Receptives: NWT, ATI,
ART, Bonotel, Tourico, FTI Touristik (Germany,
GTA Austria, Switzerland)
Receptive: Meeting Point
International
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 19OVERVIEW OF TRAVEL TRADE LANDSCAPE
Printed brochures (“catalogs”) are still important in the German speaking markets, consumers
like to pick up a guide in the travel agencies to study it at home. Due to the corona crisis, not all
tour operators produced catalogs this season. For example, CANUSA Touristik didn’t produce a
new brochure for the next season, they have a new online inspirational guide for their clients. It’s
becoming more important to inspire the clients with nice images and give some information
about the destination.
Also TUI is changing its print products for next season, the Camper catalog will become a
magalogue. These so-called “Magalogues” are becoming more popular, it’s a mix between a
catalog and a magazine with many images, description of the destinations and insider tips,
but no prices.
The trend might be that less tour operators work with brochures, online product will become
more important, also in order to make changes more easily.
Brochure validity:
U
sually year round: April to March. Brochures are
published between November and February;
re-prints with updated prices may be produced a
few months later. Some operators run brochures
that are only valid for six months (April to October
and November to March/April)
Brochure space policy:
P roduct will be given space in operators’ brochures
at the operator’s discretion. Product inclusion
is generally dependent on the relationships or
agreement with partners
Setting rates:
M
ay/June for brochure updates which are published
in November. July/ August for brochures which are
published Dec/Jan/Feb. Rates are normally set two
months before brochure is published
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 20STATUS OF TOUR OPERATORS WHO
HAVE PREVIOUSLY WORKED WITH
TRAVEL SOUTH USA
It’s not just the large US-specialists that can be relevant for regions like the Southern-US states.
Smaller Tour Operators, who focus on the US often have very loyal customers who travel to the
USA more often and are therefore ideal for 2nd/3rd tier destinations. Tour Operators specializing
on certain travel types as Outdoor /active trips can be interesting. Due to the rich culture, musical
landscape and history, group tour operators - which often emerged from small travel agencies with
loyal clientele - are also highly interesting partners.
Travel Agencies US-Specialists Long-haul specialists
(selling own product as well) (partly own travel agency)
ruising Reisen
C
A
AR Anglo-American merikareisen.at
A
rlebe Fernreisen
E
Reisebüro GmbH
merica Unlimited
A
airflight Touristik
F
F ly2America anusa Touristik
C
arawane Reisen
K
D
istinc Travel RD Touristik
C
necht Reisen AG
K
aszination Fernweh
F
iamir Erlebnisreisen
D
Niche Tour
eridia Reisen
M
D
rp Kulturtours uck-Zuck Urlaub
R Wholesalers
M
aya Travel Inn njoy America
E
UI / TUI Suisse
T
sareisen.de
U
ER Touristik
D
TI Touristik
F
xplorer Fernreisen
E
otelplan MTCH AG
H
All of the above named are still in business and have kept all of their US-Southern product!
Even if some are not producing a brochure in 2020/21, their portfolio is online, and their offices
are up and running.
Please find in the following short notes on selected companies, due to certain developments
throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 21STATUS OF TOUR OPERATORS WHO
HAVE PREVIOUSLY WORKED WITH
TRAVEL SOUTH USA
Most tour operators in Germany/Austria & Switzerland had to reduce their teams and their
working hours during the pandemic. Many tour operators secure jobs in the corona crisis by
facilitating short-time work. Short-time work (Kurzarbeit) is a social insurance program whereby
employers reduce their employees’ working hours instead of laying them off. Here are some updates
from several tour operators from the German speaking markets (as of January 14, 2021):
C
RD Touristik: CRD has been acquired by Berlin-based Geoplan Touristik GmbH after going
into administration in April 2020. Both companies continued to work autonomously under
the management of Geoplan CEO Tobias Büttner. The newly formed CRD Touristik GmbH is
be a wholly owned subsidiary. It remains based in Hamburg and operate as a separate unit true
to its values. In total 16 out of 28 employees remained with the company
C
ANUSA Touristik: CANUSA also had to reduce their staff members all over Germany,
in their travel agencies as well as their headquarter in Hamburg. CANUSA stated that they
already have bookings for 2021 and are quite optimistic for the time when the travel ban has
been lifted. They also started marketing activities with some destinations
F TI Touristik: Germany’s third-largest tour operator FTI Group has gained €235 million in
state financial support with the backing of majority shareholder Samih Sawiris. Nevertheless,
they had to close down language holidays specialist LAL Sprachreisen, the small FTI Cruises
business (with its single ship, the Berlin), the Fly.de flight sales portal and the Touristic 24 call
center
S TA Travel: The travel agency chain, which originally had 42 branches in Germany, had filed
for insolvency under its own administration during the Corona crisis in August 2020. They
have sold part of its nationwide branch network and 26 branches were taken over by Cockpit-
Flug & Touristik GmbH
T
UI Germany: The travel group, hit hard by the Corona crisis, is saved from bankruptcy by
a capital increase. TUI’s owners have cleared the way for the German government to take a
stake of up to 25 percent plus one share in the tourism group. The TUI Group also made top
management changes, bringing hotel brands Robinson and Magic Life closer together, and
expanding destination activities in a series of restructuring measures
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 22STATUS OF TOUR OPERATORS WHO
HAVE PREVIOUSLY WORKED WITH
TRAVEL SOUTH USA
America Unlimited: In 2020, CEO Timo Kohlenberg had the idea of offering trips to
destinations without travel warnings and therefore they founded a new tour operator brand,
called Corocierge (Corona and Concierge). Corocierge is the first Corona travel agency to
specialize in travel in pandemic times. The new brand will prepare their customers on what
conditions must be met, what restrictions are to be expected and how entry will be handled
H
otelplan: Hotelplan Suisse expects half of its turnover in 2021, but thanks to the backup of its
mother company Migros, they are optimistic to survive the crisis. Hotelplan`s premium brand
Globus Reisen will be stopped as of end of January 2021. All 5 Globus Reisen lounges will be
renamed by January 31, 2021 and remain with the branch network of Hotelplan Suisse
D
ER Touristik: The Corona crisis is also taking its toll on DER Touristik. The travel group
has to streamline its operations in Germany. The number of management positions has been
reduced and the number of employees will be cut by 250 full-time positions as well
B
oomerang: Formerly carrying a good portion of Southern-US product, Boomerang took out
all of their US product and focused strictly on Canada. This decision was made actually before
the Corona-crisis and might be revised in the future. During the year 2020, the company had
to reduce their sales branches massivly, laying off a total of 22 employers
A
RGUS Reisen: They had to lay off some staff, nevertheless the company benefits from
government support. But they kept all product, also the various roundtrips and properties,
being featured in the Southern US states. Many states are presented with own sub-pages on the
Argus website, including tour suggestions, attraction highlights and special suggestions. Argus
is very confident to survive the crisis and currently work on their new website layout
A
mericareisen.at: They are still busy with cancellations from 2020’s bookings and haven’t
received all refunds from the airlines yet. They have not any bookings or requests for the
US in 2021, not for Canada either. Their customers are very careful and will wait how the
situation develops
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 23STATUS OF TOUR OPERATORS WHO
HAVE PREVIOUSLY WORKED WITH
TRAVEL SOUTH USA
Usareisen.de: As a travel agency and brand of Flamingo Company Fernreisen they are
specializing in travel to North America. They offer programs and products of leading tour
operators, mainly FTI and focus on direct sales through their travel portals USA-Reisen.de,
drive-usa.de and drive-canada.de and their stationary travel agency in Berlin. With direct
access also to portals such as Expedia, usareisen.de is able to provide customers with a variety
of offers even in areas less covered by receptives. They also offer creative marketing ideas
Ruck Zuck Urlaub: The small US-specialist had an idea to boost the business: They advertise
an online wine tasting with their customers and sell corresponding wine boxes. Since wine
tasting is difficult in reality at the moment, the company moved such events to the Internet.
Customers can order boxes of different types of wine to take home. The wine tasting will then
take place via Facebook/zoom video. There, customers are shown which wines they should
now open and all information about the wine. Participants can use the commentary function
to directly participate in the event and ask questions
Explorer Fernreisen: Their sales offices have decreased working hours from 10am-4pm to
11am-3pm as they had little requests and bookings throughout 2020. Up to November the
number of requests and bookings were higher, but even then, only 10% of last year’s revenue
during the same time period. Popular destinations in the past months were Maldives and
Seychelles, but when discussions about a second lockdown started the number of bookings
decreased again
Cruising Reise: Up until January 2020, did not see any bookings for 2021 yet, some requests
for Canada though. They don’t do any marketing activities or product development due
to short-time working. They also didn’t produce a catalogue for 2021. Most of their clients
rebooked their vacation from 2020 to 2021. Product-wise they keep all of their US-product,
including the Southern States, routings for the South had been expanded significantly before
Covid-19, also due to marketing efforts.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 24STATUS OF TOUR OPERATORS WHO
HAVE PREVIOUSLY WORKED WITH
TRAVEL SOUTH USA
Summary:
The major travel groups in Germany such as DER Touristik, TUI and FTI Touristik are currently
in the midst of restructuring. Job positions are being re-staffed, and in some cases, jobs are being
cut and reorganized in order to be able to survive in the future. Despite short-time working, many
tour operators who are selling the US and are working with Travel South USA, had to cut jobs
and/or downsize their companies already. But the main contacts in product management and
their positions have hardly changed at the moment.
Overall, tour operators have not reduced their product portfolio during the pandemic and have
left it unchanged. Some tour operators who are still printing catalogs have shown less product
there in some cases, but the all products are still available online.
Many tour operators already have some bookings for 2021 to the US, mainly for fall/winter 2021.
Due to the relaxed cancellation conditions, many customers cannot wait to book their vacations
and are planning their trips already.
Some tour operators have gotten creative with new ideas, such as America Unlimited and Ruck
Zuck Urlaub, who now offers digital wine tastings for example.
The tour operators are optimistic because of the advancing vaccination possibilities. Nevertheless,
a complete recovery of the travel market is still not expected in 2021 by them.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 25STATUS OF TOUR OPERATORS WHO
HAVE PREVIOUSLY WORKED WITH
TRAVEL SOUTH USA
All tour operators with Southern States product and with whom the destinations in the German-
speaking market have been working are still in business (as of January 14). With support from the
German government, the companies will probably manage to overcome the Corona crisis.
These are a few examples of what the German government is doing to help companies:
The German government wants to secure more jobs in the unprecedented Corona crisis
by extending short-time work benefits. This was extended from the regular 12 to up to 24
months (until end of 2021). This helps companies to save staff costs and at the same time
allows them, to keep long developed expertise and knowledge
Relaxations in insolvency law are to be extended to prevent a wave of bankruptcies in the
Corona crisis. Accordingly, the regulation on the suspension of the obligation to file for
insolvency continued for the reason for filing for over-indebtedness
The so-called “bridging assistance” offers financial support for small and medium-sized
enterprises, self-employed persons and non-profit organizations. It helps to mitigate declining
sales during the Corona crisis. The support is offered by the federal and state governments.
This assistance will run from January 2021 to June 2021
In order to improve the liquidity and cover running costs during the pandemic, it’s also
possible to obtain a loan for companies which is easy to apply for, so-called “KfW loans”.
The Federal Government has extended this special program until June 30, 2021. In addition,
solo self-employed persons and companies with up to ten employees can also apply for a
KfW rapid loan
Conclusion:
The German tour operators have been receiving a lot of support from the German government
to survive this crisis and most of them do not need to fear ending up in bankruptcy thanks to the
support. As costs remain high, many operators had to lay off some staff members while most of
the key personnel in product management remain in place, at least for the time being. In addition
to the support of the government, many tour operators worked on creative solutions in order
to overcome the situation. Therefore we hopefully won’t see many US tour operators go into
insolvency.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 26TOUR OPERATORS WITH POTENTIAL
FOR TRAVEL SOUTH USA
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, the tour operator landscape in German-speaking Europe
remains diverse and promising companies are appearing that Travel South USA has not yet been
able to invite or had on its radar – because they are expanding the USA in their portfolio, or
because they are pursuing new business models.
MESO REISEN: A small-sized German tour operator based in Berlin specializing in long-haul
destinations including USA, Canada, Asia, Australia, New Zealand, Central & South America
and Africa. Their main focus is on FIT products and sustainable travel. MESO also represents
AMTRAK in the German market. Currently they are updating their website with more
information about the destinations.
TOURLANE: An online tour operator for individual and adventure holidays, based in Berlin.
They offer their customers the consulting expertise of an offline travel agency combined with
the ease and speed of the Internet. Tourlane’s portfolio so far includes trips to more than 40
countries, including Canada and the US (West coast, Hawaii, Florida, Western National Parks
and Route 66). Plans before Covid-10 were, to expand into other US-areas. By visiting the
website or using the app, users are connected online to travel experts who will personally assist
them during their free consultation, the booking procedure and the actual trip.
BIKE THE BEST: A German tour operator specializing in motorcycle vacations in North
America. They offer pre-planned or tailor-made motorcycle tours throughout the US. So far,
their product in the US-Southern States has much room for expansion. The owner Micky
Kern, is a passionate biker and US-fan herself.
DNDS GmbH – USA-REISE EXPERTE: A German travel agency and small tour operator
with strict focus on the US. They do not have a brochure, but a detailed website with their
offers. They already offer several of the classic- Southern round trips (use New World Travel
and Expedia), however there is potential for growth, especially in the South. The owner David
Siemetzki is updating his clientele on a regular basis via online video podcasts.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 27PRODUCT PRE/POST COVID-19
Most tour operators stated that they will not change their product portfolio during the
pandemic. Due to staff reductions and short time working, there is not much time at the
moment and the tour operators don’t see the need to change their portfolio now. They stated
that they will keep the Southern States in their portfolio like before, the product will not be cut
at the moment. They only take out hotels/attractions which are not open anymore or where the
contracts expired.
Suggestion: The existing product of the Southern States remains in the portfolio of the tour
operator for the time being, but some states such as Arkansas, West Virginia and Missouri
are almost not included in round trips at all. These states in particular should cooperate with
neighboring states and launch new round trips together with a tour operator and carry out
smaller marketing activities to promote them, provided that budget is available. Other new
combinations of round trips of the states are also possible and easy to implement especially for
specialized tour operators.
Certainly, the tour operators are open for new
suggestions like new itineraries and hotels. They
will work on product additions post-Covid and
when it is certain that the travel ban has been lifted
and the entry into the USA is possible again
For most tour operators the hotels will
automatically be adapted in their system (if hotels
close or made major changes) and they have mostly
dynamic rates
Many specialized tour operators are currently
expanding their product portfolio in general
and start offering new destinations. Mainly tour
operators specialized in long-haul travel start now
with programs in Europe and/or Germany. For
example, round trip specialist Ikarus Tours is
expanding its European program significantly in the
coming year. Also US-specialist CANUSA started
to offer trips to Northern Europe for the time being,
this will just be an addition to their US/Canada portfolio
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 28CURRENT AND FUTURE TRENDS
1. TRAVEL TRADE
G
ermany continues to be a very traditional market with about 11,000 travel agencies in
Germany (number of agencies pre Covid-19 crisis). Unfortunately, the number of travel
agencies will decrease during/after the corona crisis
A
fter the crisis, travel agencies will continue to be important, if not even more so, for German
tourists. Due to many cancellations and rebookings during the pandemic, travelers noticed
that it is easier to have a contact person to handle these matters for them
Th
e topic safety will be much more in the focus when booking a trip than before
W
hen it comes to the type of travel booking, online bookings are increasing. Online booking
platforms such as Tripadvisor, Booking.com or Expedia are becoming more popular. The
number of online bookers increased up to 41 percent in 2019. Bookings via smartphone are
also becoming more common
T
our operator packages remain the preferred booking option for long-haul trips and the
demand for offline and printed material continues to be high
Conclusion:
Bookings via OTAs are mainly for
short trip or hotels/flights only,
travelers mostly need more assistance
when booking long-haul trips.
Trips to the Southern States of the
USA, and thus mainly round trips,
continue to be booked through
tour operators/travel agencies,
as these types of trips are very
complex and sometimes require
more consultation. Consumers feel
safe when booking with an agent and
appreciate the personal service and
more importantly they feel secure,
also due to the insurances. Therefore
it is still important that Travel South
cooperates with tour operators in the
German speaking market.
source: DRV
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 29CURRENT AND FUTURE TRENDS
2. ACCOMMODATION
In recent years hotels belonged to the preferred types of accommodation for German travelers.
According to the German Travel Association DTV (Deutscher Tourismusverband), 48.5 percent
of Germans stayed in hotels in 2019 while 22.3 percent planned their overnight stays in a holiday
apartment/ home. Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, this ratio has changed. For
2021, holiday apartments/homes are the preferred accommodation type (63 percent) while hotel
stays are on second position with 31 percent. This shows a survey by the holiday home platform
HomeToGo.
The Swiss traveler prefers quality and excellent service when travelling. Therefore, according to
Visit the USA Market Data, 60 percent Swiss travelers tend to book 4-star hotels.
These are important trends during/post Covid-19:
T
ravelers now place more emphasis on safety and hygiene measures and standards. They feel
more comfortable in remote places like campsites or vacation homes/apartments and they pay
more attention to the hygiene standards when choosing a hotel
It is becoming more and more important for hotels to comply with hygiene rules and to make
sure that it is safe. Due to the pandemic, when it comes to lodging, people will prefer smaller
hotels, boutique hotels or even private lodging. This is because these proposals turn out to
be safer and generate greater trust. Another important priority for travelers is hygiene and
following each of the health protocols in the different phases of the tip
A
nother new accommodation trend might be “Glamping”: this one mixes the concept of
camping with luxury in ultra-equipped tents, including all comforts and amenities. Like road
trips and nature tourism, camping also stepped into the spotlight among 2020 travel trends.
People like the idea of sleeping under the stars. But, they also like hot showers, fluffy towels
and the amenities of a 5-star hotel suite which will be delivered by glamping as well
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 30CURRENT AND FUTURE TRENDS
2. ACCOMMODATION
RV/Motorhomes
In Germany, there was a guest record on campsites in 2020: Despite the Corona crisis, there
were 8.57 million overnight stays in July on mobile homes and camping sites, the Federal
Association of the German Camping Industry announced. That is 0.5 percent more than in
July 2019. This trend will definitely continue over the next years for travel in general. In a
camper you have the possibility to be on the road in your own four walls and yet spend your
vacation far away from your own balcony or garden. Under observance of special hygiene
measures one can go with the camper again confidently on the camping sites
(source www.t-online.de)
D
ue to the Corona pandemic, the demand for motorhome travel will continue to grow as
travelers feel safer and can travel to more remote locations rather than staying in hotels. Many
tour operators already promote booking RV’s for 2021, since shortages are expected for
offers in the US, due to the high demand of motorhomes
Conclusion:
The Southern States might not be the states with the most
offers in this area, therefore one should look there for
alternatives for the travelers and offer them comparable
possibilities. For example, encourage states to promote
more small B&B’s instead of bigger hotels or focus on
apartments where the travelers can cater for themselves
and therefore avoid crowds in a dining room.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 31CURRENT AND FUTURE TRENDS
3. TRANSPORTATION
Aviation status
Due to the Covid-19 crisis, over one million commercial flights have been cancelled in
Germany since March 1, 2020. This represents an 83 percent drop in passenger numbers year-
on-year. This was reported by the European air traffic control organization Eurocontrol. The
largest share of current flight movements is accounted for domestic German connections, of
which around half the pre-crisis volume was offered. There were 61 percent fewer connections to
European destinations. (source: www.fvw.de).
According to the statistics from the National Travel and Tourism Office (https://travel.trade.gov),
arrivals from Germany to the United States were down 97.3 percent in August 2020, and down
78.9 percent for the year to date compared to the same period in 2019.
G
erman leisure airline Condor successfully completed a year-long financial turnaround and
will resume its search for a strategic investor once the worst of the corona pandemic is over.
Condor was forced into insolvency protection following the collapse of former owner Thomas
Cook Group in 2019 and gained financial support from German state authorities to keep it in
the air. Since then, the Frankfurt-based airline has managed to reduce its structural operating
costs through efficiency measures. Despite the current worldwide travel restrictions, Condor
is looking rather positive into the future, restructured its winter flight plan and recently
announced new connections to the Dominican Republic and Malé on the Maldives
F ollowing a rescue operation by the German government, among others, Lufthansa is now
partly state-owned. In total, the countries Germany, Austria and Switzerland invested nine
billion Euros in the airline group. In addition the airline was able to raise money on the capital
market and issued a corporate bond in the amount of one billion Euros. The goal for the airline
however is, to touch as little of the money as possible and to free himself from state ownership
as quickly as possible
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 32CURRENT AND FUTURE TRENDS
3. TRANSPORTATION
Rentals
Sixt, the German rental car company, is again making a quarterly profit: when the half-year
figures were presented, Sixt had already reported that things were slowly starting to pick
up again. For the future, the service provider is confident and firmly believes in its business
model: “The long-term trend towards individual mobility is more likely to be promoted by
Corona,” CEO Erich Sixt is convinced. Sixt is undoubtedly proud of its business in the USA.
The expansion there is progressing. Sixt is now represented there at 100 stations and has a
presence at almost all important airports. According to his own statements, Sixt was recently
able to take over ten airport stations from insolvent competitor Hertz (source: fvw.de)
Conclusion:
In our opinion, rental cars will
continue to be important for German
travelers, as they allow them to be
independent and explore a lot at their
own pace. It will continue to be a
popular means of travel post-Covid.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 33CURRENT AND FUTURE TRENDS
4. ATTRACTIONS
During the pandemic, the tour operators kept the attractions they featured before in their
portfolio, but didn’t add any new ones though. It’s possible to book them separately from the
trip, but sometimes they are also included already. For 2021, the tour operators will continue
selling all available attractions and will be open to add new ones once the borders are open.
The attractions should be bookable through a receptive operator
According to several tour operators, City Pass as well as individual attractions are good for
their portfolio and they don’t have a real preference. Especially the “smaller” attractions might
be better via City Pass, certain others, such as Alcatraz for example, are very popular and are
therefore more of a single attraction. It might be more attractive for the tour operator as well
as for the attraction if they can promote them individually. But if this “attraction” is then also
included in the City Pass, it’s good
as well
Conclusion:
In the future it will be more important, also for attractions,
to follow the hygiene concepts and rules for the client’s
safety. It is definitely recommended for big cities to offer
some kind of City Pass to bundle the attractions for the
traveler. It is much clearer and possibly one could also offer
uniform hygiene concepts and promote them via a so-called
Attraction Pass/City Pass.
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 34DURATION AND TYPE OF VACATIONS
TO THE US
Due to the high number of paid vacation time, Germans stay in the United States for around
two weeks on average. Certainly, short trip such as Christmas Shopping are popular, too. Due
to the new rules and regulations caused by the pandemic (Corona testing etc.), most likely
German travelers will not just stay for a short time, but extend their stay by e.g. combining
destinations with beach and city vacation. They will continue to visit more than one state and
combine states during their stay
The US traveler from Germany mainly wants to be
independent and explore the country on his own.
He brings a lot of time and would like to see a lot and
preferably several states and not just one region. His
goal is to experience a lot and also get to know the
other culture. This will probably not change much “post
Covid”, but the traveler will become more careful and
pay more attention to safety and hygiene and perhaps
avoid larger crowds and especially in the first time rather
enjoy nature than the bigger cities
A good example which will work well in the future and
will most likely become more popular in the future are
tools to create round trips which are completely adapted
to the needs of customers. The German tour operator
FTI invented such tool called “360Grad”, it’s very
flexible and FTI only give suggestions to their clients and
they can change and adapt the room nights and route as they like
Lieb Management | Travel South USA 35You can also read
