62% Americans Concerned About Traveling to Europe Due to War – Survey Findings

The travel sector, which was heavily impacted by the pandemic, was slowly regaining last year and hoped for a full-scale revival in 2022 ; unfortunately, the Russian invasion of Ukraine has put a dent to the high hopes the industry had for the year ahead. Many hospitality and travel companies are concerned about Europe’s tourist rebound.

MMGY Travel Intelligence surveyed hundreds of U.S. visitors who planned to visit Europe about the conflict to better understand its influence on traveler opinion and behaviour.

Survey’s key findings:

• 62% of US passengers affirmed that the ongoing war and the possibility of it spilling to neighboring countries was a major factor which would influence their plans to visit Europe.

• 47% of passengers said they will prefer to wait and see how the situation in Ukraine develops, before planning a trip to Europe this year.

• 50% of those polled were concerned about anticipated airline delays and cancellations, as well as border restrictions.

• Italy is the most favoured destination among those polled, followed by France, the United Kingdom and Germany.

According to MMGY Global CEO Clayton Reid, “Now is the time for travel providers to address this hesitancy around European travel by reminding consumers of flexible cancellation and rebooking policies,” Reid said in a written statement.

“Much like at the height of the Omicron variant, we can’t predict how the situation may escalate, but travelers should feel confident in booking because of the flexible policies most airlines, hotels and OTAs introduced in response to COVID-19.”