New Travel Behaviour: An Update For Accommodation In Harare

Decades ago, there was a song that bounced around families for a while that sang of braaivleis, rugby, sunny skies and Chevrolet. It evoked holiday suntan memories, bees hovering over cold drink cans and road trips with the whole family bundled into the sedan.

New Travel Trends

With the unattractiveness of air travel, due to unannounced lockdowns, losses due to cancellations and extremely high viral loads, we have seen the rebirth of road trips globally. People are seeking out destinations that are easily accessible by road.

Local travel has seen a significant boost, and carbon footprints have fallen due to less air travel.

Another trend that has started is the size and format of the travelling group. Whole families are travelling on these shorter journeys as they are more tolerable for the older folk. So, granny, grandpa, and Cousin Bertie are trundling along too. This is also because family pods do not have to practise social distancing if they have all agreed to a general social distancing code of conduct.

With the family is pulling closer together, this is excellent news for the fabric of society.

Even companies are doing lower carbon footprint travel plans for company strategy or team building breakaways. For companies with multiple branches, multiple hub accommodations are designated to which the various/closest branches travel to, then the congregated teams at the hubs connect virtually to the other hubs.

What To Look For

In the “old days”, yes a few months ago is now referred to as the “old days” which is ironically appropriate considering how fast life has sped up, we would choose accommodation on looks-comfort-service-price.

Now, with a virus lurking in every nook and cranny and steel door handle, our parameters around hygiene have adjusted. We now look for accommodation which not only follows strict hygiene but are transparent with their sanitation protocols.

Staying in a (quality) hotel will be safer than at your home. Specialists sign off the relentless focus on health and sanitation protocols, and there are staff dedicated to it.

Another thing we are looking for after all this social distancing is real human interaction. You’re sprayed like a bug everywhere you go and have to talk to people through masks, screens and more masks.

What you want when you arrive at your accommodation is a beaming, warm smile of absolute delight. It must come with genuine warmth, radiating welcome and excitement at your having arrived.

One last thing on our list is that people are looking for are experiences. We have all become aware of the ethereal quality of ownership of things as this lockdown has wiped out a lot of ownership of material things for a lot of people. What cannot be taken away are memories of wonderful experiences.

So, over the top luxury is non-essential and finding destinations that move us is of greater priority. When lockdowns are removed entirely, millennials and Gen X will start moving around the world for medium-term stays, renting their way around, buying far less frequently. The work-from-anywhere style of life is firm with us to stay.

If you are looking for accommodation in Harare that offers hygienic practices and a warm welcome – contact Willow Lodge today.