GIMME A BREAK: COVID isn’t biggest travel worry
In a sign that the pandemic fears of North Americans may be abating, a recent poll conducted by medical transport and crisis response provider Medjet reveals that a majority of its members are less concerned about COVID-19 than about other health and safety risks while travelling.
Indeed, survey respondents said they were more concerned with traditional travel risks, such as strokes, heart problems, accidents and falls, as well as concerns about crime, by a three to one margin (75% to 25%) over the coronavirus.
The poll, which was conducted in May and surveyed nearly 1,200 Medjet members throughout Canada, the US and Mexico, provides a current snapshot of travellers’ comfort level as vaccinations take hold.
In addition to gauging travellers’ concerns about testing positive for or contracting COVID-19 while away from home, the study drew insights on how safe members feel about travelling domestically and internationally once they are vaccinated. The study also surveyed participants’ domestic and international summer travel plans, and their planned modes of transport (airplane, car/RV, other).
The new poll results show that the majority of Medjet’s members are ready to resume travelling. Some key insights include:
• 90.7% said they’d feel safer travelling domestically and internationally once vaccinated
• 89.8% said they planned to travel this summer
• Of those travelling, 72.4% planned domestic travel, 21% planned both domestic and international travel, 6.4% planned international only
• Of those travelling, 57.2% intended to board airplanes, 38.2% would be travelling by car or RV (4.6% “other”)
• 75.3% of respondents were most concerned about non-COVID illnesses and accidents, or travel security/increased crime, while travelling this summer.
With travel beginning to open up again, Medjet says it has seen a sharp uptick in both member renewals and new consumer membership sales.
“It shows that more than we think is ‘back to normal,” said Medjet CEO Mike Hallman. “Travellers are back to thinking about all the other things that can happen to them on a trip.”
Medjet, which counts AARP, the NFL, the three top luxury travel advisory consortia, as clients was one of the first companies to introduce COVID-19 transport benefits to its program.
First published at Travel Industry Today