An interview about the world's reopening to travel after the initial wave of COVID-19 travel restrictions.
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Afar.com is a digital and print magazine that publishes travel tips, guides, news, and stories: https://www.afar.com
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Follow AFAR on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AfarMedia
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TravelTranscript
00:00 [MUSIC PLAYING]
00:03 Thank you guys all for being here, our ideal dinner party.
00:14 And I'll introduce our panel first,
00:15 if you just want to wave your hand that you're here.
00:18 And then we'll get into our panel today.
00:20 So we have Chris Austin in Seattle,
00:24 the Senior Vice President of Global Sales and Marketing
00:26 for Seaborn.
00:29 Hi.
00:29 Hi.
00:30 Nice to be here.
00:30 We have Elliot Ferguson, the CEO of Destination DC,
00:35 who is also the National Chair of the US Travel Association,
00:38 which really promotes and supports tourism.
00:40 It's hugely important in the US.
00:43 Hello.
00:45 We have Brett Armitage, the Chief Commercial Officer
00:47 at Kirzner, which includes Atlantis and one and only
00:50 resorts in Dubai.
00:54 And then we have Denise Jackson, the President and Co-Owner
00:57 of Balboa Travel, which is a $250 million agency in San
01:02 Diego.
01:03 So thank you for being here, Denise.
01:07 And then from afar, we have our Executive Editor,
01:09 Jeremy Saum, who's just outside of San Francisco,
01:12 and then Ellen Asmodeo, our Executive Vice President
01:15 and Chief Revenue Officer for afar.
01:18 So some of us are starting to travel again or plan
01:22 our next trips.
01:23 We're not all sitting in our houses
01:24 like we were six weeks ago, and we're slowly
01:26 emerging and trying to be responsible citizens
01:30 and travelers, but also support our industry, which
01:32 so desperately needs it.
01:33 So for me, if air bridges open up as expected in the UK,
01:37 allowing us to travel without quarantine,
01:39 I'll be going to Spain in a couple of weeks.
01:41 And I have trips planned to Switzerland and to Italy,
01:43 as well as around England, including the Cotswolds.
01:47 So at the same time, the pandemic isn't over,
01:50 but I'm still looking at the positive things happening.
01:54 So a month ago, there were all of these news stories,
01:56 and we didn't expect the European borders
01:58 to be opening this soon.
01:59 So they have, and we haven't seen any significant uptick.
02:03 So while the news is not a fun place to live,
02:06 there are some good things happening for industry,
02:08 and that's what I'm choosing to focus on.
02:11 So with that spirit, I'd love to open with Jeremy
02:14 to talk about our next issue, which
02:16 focuses on hope and recovery.
02:17 Thank you, Annie.
02:22 It's great to be with you all today.
02:24 I think these gatherings have really been helpful to all of us
02:28 as we try to navigate these challenging times
02:32 with so many unknowns and the news changing so quickly.
02:37 As a company, at Afar, we've really
02:39 leaned into our digital coverage to keep our audience informed
02:43 of every twist and turn of the news
02:46 and how that affects them as travelers.
02:49 But we're also really excited about putting out
02:52 our next issue.
02:54 First of all, it'll be great to get a break from a screen.
02:57 As someone who's worked in print for a long time,
03:00 I hope all of these Zooms are reminding us
03:03 how nice it is to relax with words and pictures on paper.
03:07 Little plug for print there.
03:10 But the other thing the magazine lets us do
03:12 is take a step back from the daily whiplash
03:16 and think bigger and more broadly
03:18 about where travel is headed.
03:20 So our next issue will be focused on, as Annie said,
03:23 hope and recovery.
03:25 It's going to be a special issue in that it won't follow
03:28 the usual format that we've been publishing
03:31 for the last few years.
03:34 It'll be made up of three sections.
03:36 The first section is called re-imagine.
03:40 And that's a word we've been using a lot at Afar lately.
03:44 This pause in travel has allowed us all to think
03:48 about how travel works.
03:50 And we at Afar think it offers a chance for us
03:52 to make travel better than it was before.
03:55 Probably heard us say this on previous Afar Lives.
04:00 Destinations have had the chance to think about how they manage
04:02 visitors and how tourism affects locals.
04:06 Other providers have had to figure out
04:07 how to deal with the virus, but also
04:09 had the chance to examine their impact on destinations.
04:12 And travelers who have been forced to stay home
04:16 have had a chance to reflect on how
04:17 they move through the world.
04:20 So for this first section of the magazine,
04:21 that's what we'll be focusing on, the traveler.
04:25 We have three writers doing essays
04:26 that encourage readers to think about the kind of traveler
04:29 they want to be.
04:31 How do we maintain that appreciation
04:34 for the little things that I think many of us
04:36 have felt during lockdown?
04:39 What does it mean to be a global citizen now
04:42 after the entire world has shared this experience?
04:46 How do we slow down and become a force for good in the places
04:50 that we go?
04:51 So some pretty big questions, but I
04:53 think a lot of our readers are thinking about this stuff.
04:56 And we know that Afar readers are kind of like travel role
05:00 models, and they share this desire
05:02 to be a positive influence on the world.
05:05 So we want to help them do that.
05:07 So that's what that first section is going to be about.
05:10 The second section is going to be called Reconnect.
05:14 I think a lot of us on this call would
05:16 agree that travel is at its best when it builds
05:18 bridges across cultures and allows us all to celebrate
05:21 our common humanity.
05:23 And so the stories in this section
05:25 focus on people and on rebuilding
05:28 those human connections that we've all
05:30 been missing so much.
05:33 That might happen over a glass of cider
05:35 in the French countryside or in a conversation
05:38 with a craftsperson in a market or talking
05:41 with a taxi driver in Jamaica.
05:43 Those are all the destinations where we'll be taking readers
05:46 in that section.
05:48 And then the third section is called Reveal.
05:52 And this is our feature section with longer stories
05:55 and big, beautiful photography.
05:58 This part of the magazine is all about inspiration.
06:01 We're focusing on three destinations
06:04 that have been hit hard by the virus--
06:06 Italy, China, and New York City.
06:09 The China and Italy stories were actually
06:11 reported before the virus hit.
06:14 But they are all updated.
06:17 And it actually turns out to be a great opportunity
06:20 to remind us all of how much of life
06:22 happens beyond the headlines.
06:25 At AFAR, we often talk about taking people
06:27 beyond the headlines.
06:28 And that seems even more important now.
06:31 It's so easy to get caught up in the news.
06:33 But life is happening everywhere.
06:36 And in so many ways, it is beautiful and worth celebrating.
06:40 And we can't forget that.
06:43 So we've often seen that as part of our mission
06:46 at AFAR, to open people's eyes to that
06:49 and remind them of that.
06:50 And it just seems like an even more valuable message
06:54 to bring to the travel world right now.
06:57 So we're really looking forward to sharing all of this
07:00 with you and the rest of our audience
07:01 and reminding us all of the many reasons
07:04 we have to be hopeful.
07:06 And I will leave you with that and let
07:08 these experts tell us about what's going on in their world.
07:11 Thank you, Vermeer.
07:12 It's so inspiring.
07:13 And I love that phrase or that term, travel role model.
07:18 Who we look up to as travel role models.
07:20 Can we be that?
07:20 I love that.
07:21 It's a great thing to think about.
07:24 Thank you.
07:25 Elliot, I wanted to open with you
07:27 because you've seen a lot of changes, of course,
07:31 of the past few weeks.
07:32 But you're going to see more changes in the next few weeks
07:34 as you start to open up even more safely.
07:38 But what are you seeing in DC as far
07:39 as a return to life and tourism?
07:41 You're in a really great spot as one of the top drive markets.
07:45 And I'd also love to know how tourism supports DC,
07:50 making it a big factor in recovery.
07:53 Yeah, absolutely.
07:54 And I think Jeremy made the comment about twists and turns.
07:57 I think we've seen so many twists.
07:59 But we'd like to see a turn for the best.
08:03 And we're recognizing and seeing that the traveling community,
08:09 they're wanting to get out of the house.
08:10 They want to get on the road.
08:12 They're calling and asking questions about what's open,
08:15 what can you do in a city like Washington, which normally
08:18 offers so many free things to see and do for those
08:21 that are looking to travel.
08:23 Washington is a city that has a large presence
08:26 from the federal government.
08:28 But when you look at the hospitality industry,
08:31 there are about 79,000 people that work in hospitality
08:34 in Washington, DC.
08:36 It's one of the top five fastest and largest
08:40 economic engines for the city.
08:42 And keep in mind, there are only 700,000 people
08:45 that live in Washington.
08:46 So it's not a very large city.
08:47 I think that there's many, many more.
08:50 So I think that what we're seeing right now--
08:53 and I know that you all see the glare,
08:54 but those are my windows in my 135-year-old building that
08:58 show basically what's happening in Washington.
09:01 And we're seeing people on the streets.
09:03 We're seeing visitors coming to Washington right now.
09:06 Because the nice thing about what we have to offer
09:09 and what's open is monuments and memorials.
09:12 And you can absolutely social distance
09:15 when you're outside enjoying monuments and memorials.
09:17 And I'm seeing more and more individuals coming,
09:20 riding bikes, and wanting to see more and more opening
09:24 in the city.
09:25 But equally as important, I'm seeing everyone wearing a mask
09:29 and everyone using the protocol that's
09:31 necessary to remain safe.
09:33 So we're in stage two of opening,
09:35 which means you can have groups of 50 or less.
09:39 So therefore, about 50% of the occupancy of a restaurant
09:42 can actually be used now, all outside dining.
09:46 So it's exciting to see those things come back online.
09:49 Some of the key assets are museums and theater
09:53 and sporting events.
09:54 We'll probably see some of the museums coming online later on,
09:57 like in July and August.
09:59 Some of them are already open, like the Spy Museum
10:01 and the Museum of the Bible.
10:03 So we're seeing a slow return to normalcy,
10:07 if you will, in Washington, DC.
10:09 But it's going to be a long haul before we
10:11 get back to where we were.
10:13 Yeah, and you had said, too, I mean,
10:15 how many people live within 250 miles of DC?
10:18 There are about 50 million people.
10:20 As we're looking at markets in which we're going to go after,
10:23 we are going to go after that drive-in market.
10:26 For all of us who are still comfortable and have
10:29 the confidence of getting on an airplane
10:30 or getting on a train, we recognize the fact
10:33 that so many won't have that confidence right now.
10:36 So the point you're making to me, Annie,
10:38 is that we are going to focus on that drive-in market
10:42 and also offer protocol as to how
10:44 to bring your car into the city and keep it safe
10:47 during a pandemic.
10:49 Yeah.
10:50 Well, it's good to hear about the museums as well.
10:51 And the zoo, that's going to open soon?
10:53 Has that been announced?
10:55 Yeah, we're keeping our fingers crossed.
10:58 The zoo is a part of the Smithsonian.
11:00 There are 16 free museums that includes the zoo, which
11:05 is also free to those.
11:07 So we're looking at, hopefully, two Smithsonian's, one
11:10 including the zoo, that will include the zoo opening
11:13 in the month of July.
11:14 But we'll wait and see what happens
11:16 as they're trying to figure that all out as well.
11:19 Awesome.
11:19 Thank you.
11:21 To switch gears a little bit, Chris, can you, of course,
11:24 give us an overview of where Seaborn is at right now?
11:28 But of course, the cruise industry is in a waiting game.
11:30 The CDC isn't being very forthcoming at all on dates
11:34 to repeal the no-sail warning.
11:38 So how are you navigating this?
11:41 Yeah, great question.
11:42 It's a pleasure to be with you all today.
11:45 I'm actually coming virtually here from the Thomas Keller
11:48 Bar, actually, on Seaborn Ovation.
11:50 Just wish that we were actually all on board right now.
11:53 But sadly, as you say, we unfortunately can't.
11:59 Clearly, unprecedented is probably
12:02 one of the most overused words at the moment.
12:03 But it has so much relevance, actually.
12:06 These are really unprecedented times for the cruise industry.
12:09 And to think we're entirely paused.
12:13 And of course, Seaborn actually made the decision
12:16 pretty early on to pause operations through to mid-October
12:21 and early November.
12:22 There's a different date, actually, Annie,
12:24 because we pause through the end of the summer seasons
12:29 for our five different ships.
12:30 So whether that was in Alaska, the Mediterranean,
12:33 Northern Europe, or Canada, New England.
12:36 And so we actually have these different dates
12:38 that we've paused through to the summer.
12:40 And we really made that decision so, so, so thoughtfully,
12:44 based upon what our current occupancy actually was,
12:48 actually what our cancellation rate was.
12:51 Looking at global airlift, when you look at Seaborn,
12:54 we're a fly-by-cruise product.
12:56 And the reliance on, obviously, the global aviation industry
12:59 is absolutely critical for us.
13:01 And then we're looking at all the health and safety
13:04 protocols, which, of course, without saying,
13:06 is our number one criteria to ensure that health and safety
13:10 are not only guessed, but obviously are true.
13:12 And, of course, of all the destinations and the people
13:15 and the destinations where we visit.
13:17 And there's just a long list of factors
13:19 that, when we looked at them all together,
13:21 we knew, unfortunately, we had to pause
13:24 right through the summer.
13:25 And we were, as I say, one of the first to do that.
13:28 I think our travel advisor partners, like Denise,
13:31 probably appreciated it.
13:32 Because doing all the work around 30-day pauses
13:36 every 30 days isn't much fun.
13:39 But obviously, these are very, very, very difficult decisions.
13:43 So to the point of starting up, it's not necessarily
13:48 going to be our decision.
13:50 I think you summed it up pretty well in your question, Annie.
13:53 The CDC and other government bodies and all the port
13:58 authorities--
13:58 we visit over 100 countries in the world
14:01 and nearly sail to close to 500 ports.
14:04 And it's going to be the decisions
14:07 around the opening and the protocols and the policies
14:11 that will obviously allow us to return.
14:13 But we are very hopeful.
14:14 We're planning to return to the Caribbean.
14:17 And I actually think that there is an incredible amount
14:20 of pent-up demand for cruising.
14:22 Because we're seeing good--
14:24 in fact, very good--
14:26 summer 2021 business, with Alaska and the Mediterranean
14:30 and northern Europe all performing better than,
14:33 actually, the same time last year, which certainly gives us
14:36 great confidence.
14:37 And of course, for all our loyal cruisers,
14:42 they're certainly eager to use those FCCs
14:45 and plan their future travels.
14:49 Yeah, and something we talked about, which I thought was wise,
14:54 was, of course, there's all this conversation about health
14:57 and safety, rightfully so.
14:58 But you made the decision not to make any announcements now
15:01 about you might have to wear a face mask in November.
15:04 And can you just walk us through that reasoning?
15:08 Yes, no, absolutely.
15:09 And I will say, we have huge respect of any brand,
15:13 be it obviously a resort, land-based hotels,
15:16 or a fellow cruise line that actually
15:18 is coming out with policies.
15:20 That's obviously a decision that they wish to make.
15:23 For ourselves at Seabourn, and guided
15:26 by our parent corporation, Carnival Corporation,
15:29 as well, of course, we really are
15:31 looking at the science around the pandemic, the data
15:36 that we obviously have available to us,
15:38 and again, back to the guidance that we're receiving
15:41 from many different bodies, et cetera.
15:43 And we're seeking a lot of guidance
15:45 from experts in the field.
15:49 And we somewhat believe that we need to still
15:53 take a little bit of time.
15:55 I think we've seen over the last couple of weeks
15:57 some great examples, actually, Annie, that--
16:01 I'll give you an example.
16:02 The World Health Organization made a statement on Monday.
16:06 And less than 24 hours later, we were all
16:08 reading that they were sort of taking back what they said.
16:12 And therefore, I think fluid is another word we keep using.
16:17 Dynamic is another word we keep using.
16:19 But that's irrelevant, because it is fluid and dynamic.
16:22 And we, therefore, have to take our time
16:25 to determine what is the right thing to do.
16:28 Seaboarders are also small, ultra-luxury ships.
16:31 And we have the most generous guest space ratio.
16:35 All of our suites are, obviously,
16:37 outside, full oceanfront suites, very generous, again, in size.
16:41 So we don't know today whether the requirements
16:44 for small, ultra-luxury ships are
16:46 going to be the same as for a larger ship that
16:49 carries, obviously, more people, still
16:52 delivers a fantastic experience.
16:54 We obviously visit different locations,
16:58 hidden harbors, yachting playgrounds, the world.
17:01 And will the requirements be the same in those destinations
17:04 compared to larger ports?
17:07 We know there will need to be some change.
17:10 We're very, very prepared to, obviously, embrace all of that.
17:13 Health and safety is our number one priority,
17:17 always has been for over 30-plus years, always will be.
17:21 But we just have to wait.
17:24 One of the things we want to do is tell our guests today
17:28 there's going to be 10 things they
17:29 have to do when they start to sail with us,
17:31 hopefully later this year.
17:33 And then we find there's only actually two of those things
17:37 that we need to do.
17:38 So time is probably going to be on our side a little bit
17:42 to make the right decision, Annie.
17:44 Yeah, and we already know so much more
17:46 than we did in March.
17:46 And we're going to know much more in a couple of months.
17:49 Exactly, by next week, maybe.
17:52 Hopefully, yeah.
17:54 Crack the code by next week.
17:55 And I also, later on, want to ask you about Seabourn Venture
17:58 to get excited about cruising again, which
18:00 has two custom-built submarines.
18:02 But I'll come back to you.
18:05 Denise, I mentioned, of course, you have a huge agency.
18:09 You focus primarily on corporate and business,
18:12 which I think is so interesting.
18:13 But you also do leisure.
18:15 Can you talk first about the corporate bookings
18:18 and what the general vibe is now?
18:20 You have some really interesting clients in tech and science.
18:25 Oh, you're muted.
18:26 Sorry.
18:27 There we go.
18:28 I'll unmute you.
18:28 There we go.
18:29 Sorry.
18:30 Well, we have a broad spectrum of customers.
18:34 And they're across the nation.
18:36 But they travel globally.
18:37 So the impact has been severe to us.
18:40 But we also have a large meeting and incentive piece of business.
18:44 And we handle leisure as well, as you mentioned, virtuoso.
18:48 So I know the gentlemen that are there.
18:50 And hi, Chris.
18:50 Nice to see you again.
18:52 And Elliot, it was interesting to hear what you have to say.
18:55 I have customers that are based in Washington, DC.
18:57 And hey, Brent.
18:59 And they use all of the products.
19:01 So being interviewed recently a few weeks ago,
19:06 I said a few things that I think have even changed just
19:09 over the few weeks, to Chris's point.
19:12 Things are changing daily.
19:14 And if you're watching the news, I'm based in California.
19:17 Just California had one of their worst days in terms of an uptick.
19:21 So my customers are relying on us, oftentimes,
19:27 to tell them from a corporate perspective what they need to do
19:33 and what's happening.
19:34 And they're deciding almost on a daily basis what
19:42 it is that they're going to do.
19:44 We have the biotech, bioscience companies
19:46 that sometimes have contracts with hospitals.
19:50 They're considered essential.
19:51 So they've been traveling from day one.
19:54 Although they've scaled back just to those essential travelers.
19:58 For example, we have customers that deal with cancer machines
20:02 that are in hospitals that have to go.
20:04 Technicians have to go.
20:06 They have drug dispensing machines that are there.
20:09 They must go.
20:09 They're essential.
20:10 So that's been going on.
20:11 However, they have large facilities
20:13 where doctors come for training, say in Las Vegas.
20:16 And they've closed those facilities down.
20:18 They're just about to open them up.
20:19 So they're telling us within the next 30 to 60 days,
20:23 they'll be full on again, unless there's major flare-ups that
20:26 are happening.
20:27 The flip side of that is I have a sector of religious groups
20:32 that travel.
20:33 They travel primarily from the meetings and group side.
20:36 But they do factor in as a corporate entity
20:38 because they have essential--
20:39 I'm sorry, they have travel that is
20:41 deemed what we would consider normal corporate travel.
20:45 And they have said they're not traveling until December.
20:50 Yeah.
20:52 At the earliest.
20:53 And I mean, at the same time, too,
20:55 I mean, you said you've seen the most uptick on the leisure
20:58 side, right?
21:00 Yes, so leisure for us has come back the fastest.
21:04 And when we first modeled this, unbeknownst to everybody,
21:08 everybody tried to model their business all over financially,
21:11 we modeled completely wrong.
21:13 And I'm sure everybody else did.
21:15 So we've had a few months in, and we've obviously
21:17 tried to model.
21:17 And we're pleasantly surprised to see that our modeling is--
21:22 financial model is just a little bit further ahead.
21:26 But we're modeling just from month to month,
21:30 just a small uptick every month, more realistically.
21:33 And I'm hearing that most businesses are off between 5%
21:37 and 15%.
21:37 They're operating at between 5% and 15%
21:40 from a corporate perspective.
21:41 And I'm seeing that they'll probably
21:44 end between 40% and 50% by the end of the year,
21:48 barring nothing major happens, or if the world comes back
21:52 full on.
21:52 And it also depends-- what I'm hearing
21:54 from my corporate customers is before yesterday,
21:57 and the news that we were getting
21:58 is that they're hopeful that, from a corporate perspective,
22:01 that we can get all these--
22:03 get off of level four and get down to level two.
22:06 And as things are opening up in the world,
22:08 that we're able to get back on and travel internationally,
22:14 they were thinking it would be second.
22:15 Domestic travel would be first.
22:17 Leisure travel, no doubt about it.
22:18 They're ready to go.
22:20 Nobody in their house doesn't want a vacation right now,
22:24 including me.
22:25 We are all ready to go.
22:28 And I'm not hearing as much fear about getting on planes.
22:32 It's more about scheduling.
22:33 Will the airlines have the schedules?
22:35 And when the schedule permits, can-- particularly
22:38 West Coast to East Coast.
22:40 And when we're talking about this middle seat availability,
22:43 and it's not just for the next few months,
22:45 because a lot of that's only guaranteed through September,
22:48 for example.
22:48 What happens beyond September?
22:50 And what's going to happen with the airport?
22:53 We, for example, as an agency, we set up our own COVID desk.
22:57 We have a relationship with our corporate customers
23:00 with daily information.
23:01 It comes from all factors.
23:03 And some of you that may know us know
23:05 we've built a lot of technology.
23:07 So all of you suppliers have done a fantastic job
23:10 of putting information either on your site or you send it out.
23:14 We created a central repository.
23:16 And we have our own desk of advisors
23:19 that are getting that information as
23:21 needed to our clients.
23:22 And I suggest that any advisors on the phone
23:24 creates another sort of element so you're not just firing
23:27 emails all the time to customers because they're inundated.
23:31 And they can't keep up.
23:32 And the information changes.
23:34 And it's easier for us to get it from you
23:36 guys at a central repository site of some sort.
23:40 Or we can add it to ours.
23:41 So it will be really easy at the fingertips of an advisor
23:46 so we can get it out to them.
23:48 Yeah, I think exactly what you're saying.
23:50 That's also what we're seeing at afar, too,
23:51 with our digital coverage.
23:52 Like, we have articles that we're constantly updating
23:55 and getting that kind of whiplash feeling
23:58 about what is happening.
23:59 And I think-- we had a question, actually,
24:02 before--
24:03 that came in before that there's a fine line between hope
24:06 and denial.
24:07 And I'm hearing a lot of hope.
24:09 And of course, that there's also the--
24:13 that we don't know a lot, right?
24:14 That it could go either way in the next few months.
24:18 But-- and I'll come back--
24:20 sorry?
24:21 I said we're hopeful.
24:23 Yes.
24:23 We're seeing-- we're seeing right now--
24:26 we're seeing a trend--
24:28 a better trend moving forward than backwards.
24:31 And we're seeing the bookings.
24:34 We're seeing the demand for cruises.
24:36 We're seeing the demand to get to cities.
24:38 We're waiting for those zoos to open.
24:39 We're seeing the hotels.
24:41 We've actually sent some of our staff out.
24:43 As you know, we saw Mexico opening up.
24:45 We sent some of our staff to go check things out
24:48 that are willing to go.
24:50 We're saying, go see for yourselves--
24:52 Yes.
24:53 --what it's like in those locations.
24:54 And see if those hotels are consistently
24:58 doing what they say they're doing in protocol.
25:00 So then we can safely say to a--
25:03 I mean, we can say to a customer,
25:04 it is as safe as we're seeing and what they're saying.
25:07 So we feel confident that behind our preferred suppliers
25:11 that it's OK to recommend those properties.
25:15 And I think that you guys should do it as well
25:17 if you're able to do that.
25:20 I think that's a good way.
25:21 And then we can put it back on that COVID desk that we have.
25:24 And we say, we know that this location is good.
25:26 We know that the restaurants are open
25:28 and they're at this position, that type of thing.
25:31 Thank you so much.
25:32 And I have other questions for you, too.
25:33 So I'll come back.
25:34 But Brett, I'm laughing because when we talked earlier
25:37 and you had talked about all the hopeful signs
25:39 that you're seeing, I was like, really?
25:41 Can I see some backup for that?
25:43 Because--
25:44 [LAUGHTER]
25:45 [INTERPOSING VOICES]
25:48 Can you talk a little bit about that,
25:50 about what you're seeing in your hotels, some trends?
25:53 Yes, certainly, Annie.
25:54 Thank you.
25:55 So obviously, as you know, I'm with Kirzner,
26:00 Chief Commercial Officer.
26:01 We have three brands that I oversee.
26:04 So we've got the two Atlantis properties, the one in Dubai
26:07 and also in Kenya.
26:10 I have, obviously, the one in Ailey Portfolio,
26:11 which you're most familiar with.
26:13 And I also have a resort, a casino resort in Morocco,
26:17 just outside of Casablanca, called Mazagan.
26:20 So now, evidence.
26:23 Annie was challenging me.
26:25 I was actually not fabricating.
26:28 So if we start on the east side of the world,
26:32 Wogan Valley in Australia, which has had a bumpy old ride
26:37 this year because of a course of push and tears
26:39 in the middle part of the year, has managed to reopen it.
26:43 And then, of course, it closed again.
26:45 So we officially reopened Wogan Valley on the 1st of July.
26:48 And we've actually had to restrict
26:52 the number of reservations that we're now taking for July
26:55 because the demand--
26:56 and this is all domestic demand because, as you know,
26:59 Australia has essentially put themselves in a bubble.
27:02 I'm not even sure that they eventually
27:04 didn't even open up to New Zealand.
27:06 So all our business that we're seeing into Wogan Valley
27:09 is coming out of Sydney.
27:12 Admittedly, it's only 40 rooms to fill.
27:14 But the demand has been quite, basically,
27:18 unprecedented in a positive sense.
27:21 And--
27:22 [LAUGHTER]
27:24 And so we've actually had to cap.
27:27 Because obviously, I mean, from the hotel business,
27:29 as we all know from Cruise Line, you're
27:31 starting from a standing start.
27:33 So it's one thing, obviously, we're all operating hotels.
27:37 Now, they're not.
27:38 So our staff have been sitting at home for three months.
27:41 You can't just all of a sudden throw the doors open
27:43 100% and expect things to be like clockwork.
27:45 So having a phased opening and also
27:48 recognizing that there's a new protocol,
27:50 as Denise was mentioning, that we've had to adapt to.
27:54 And as Chris said, they're all different by region.
27:56 So yes, as one and only, we've got a bench line,
27:59 which is already very high.
28:01 But then there's certain nuances for each of our locations.
28:03 So evidence proof point number one, Annie,
28:06 is that Wogan Valley will open on the 1st of July.
28:09 And demand through July and August right now
28:12 is very, very strong.
28:14 Staying in the sort of east side of the world,
28:18 but with a different brand, Atlantis in Sanya.
28:22 So perhaps a destination that not many people are
28:25 that familiar with, because it is essentially
28:28 an island off the coast of China.
28:29 And it's east of China.
28:31 And we opened Atlantis there 2 and 1/2 years ago.
28:35 It's a 1,300 room resort.
28:37 And of course, kind of went into this situation
28:42 a lot earlier than the rest of the world.
28:44 But we're now running higher occupancies
28:47 than we did same time last year.
28:49 Slightly different demographics.
28:50 So obviously, Atlantis is--
28:52 just as you're familiar with the Atlantis and the Bahamas.
28:55 But it's ostensibly a family resort.
28:58 But what we are seeing is that it's actually
29:00 a younger demographic.
29:01 And it's all couples that are coming through.
29:03 So families are perhaps a little bit more
29:05 resistant to traveling.
29:06 And also thinking about how Chinese people travel,
29:09 they tend to be more multi-ten when they travel.
29:12 But we're seeing some more millennial-type late 20s,
29:15 early 30s.
29:16 But the resort is running better and higher occupancy
29:21 this year than it did last year.
29:23 And since we reopened that, that's getting really great.
29:26 Well, and then you also-- you have the Maldives opening,
29:28 you said, right?
29:29 July 15th?
29:30 Yes.
29:31 Well, this was to Denise's point.
29:32 I was on a panel earlier this week,
29:35 and literally half an hour before the announcement
29:38 came out from the Maldivian Tourism Board
29:39 that they're going to open the-- oh my god,
29:42 I'm not sure I get this right-- the 15th of July,
29:45 the Maldives will be open for tourists, which is so exciting.
29:51 But we've seen-- and I was reviewing, actually,
29:54 this afternoon with my digital team, our search--
30:01 A, nationalities that are visiting our websites,
30:03 and what they've been searching for.
30:05 And Maldives has been the number one searched--
30:08 well, first of all, in Google, Maldives and Greece
30:10 are the two top searched international destinations
30:13 in the US right now.
30:14 That's so interesting.
30:17 And I can corroborate that, because when
30:19 I reviewed my web stats, it was the US
30:23 that was our number one source of web visitation for Maldives.
30:28 And we are looking at strong forward, both back quarter,
30:31 so November--
30:32 October, November, December is pacing ahead
30:34 at the same time last year.
30:35 So I'm confident that Maldives will come back strongly.
30:39 Wow.
30:39 Well, and we're seeing, of course,
30:41 a lot of interest for Europe.
30:42 So I think that's--
30:44 Greece is covered in that.
30:45 And I think that might be also because there's
30:47 been a lot of talk about Greece maybe
30:49 being open to Americans before the rest of Europe.
30:52 But we'll see.
30:53 Not yet.
30:54 So awesome.
30:56 And I'll come back to you, too.
30:57 But Elliot, you are also the chair of the US Travel
31:00 Association, which, of course, promotes the industry.
31:03 What are you seeing overall?
31:05 Of course, how important it is, the importance
31:07 of foreign visitors, and any insight into domestic recovery?
31:12 Yeah, with the US Travel Association,
31:14 their key priorities would be mostly
31:19 international visitation, economically,
31:22 stay longer, spend more.
31:23 We love the international visitor.
31:26 And, of course, lobbying down the street here,
31:29 Congress, on key issues specific to our industry.
31:32 So right now, one of the key things
31:35 in which they're focusing on is that our organization,
31:38 we are 501(c)(6), like most destination management
31:41 organizations are.
31:42 We have not received or are we eligible for funding
31:47 under the CARES Act that's been in place by Congress.
31:52 So as you can imagine, one of my key priorities
31:55 is to try to influence those that are on the Hill
31:57 to change that, because we need the financial wherewithal
32:02 to get back on track to promote our destinations.
32:06 The point you're making is that we talked about the fact
32:08 that the 50 million people that live
32:11 within 250 miles of Washington, we
32:13 know that the domestic market is probably
32:16 going to see some degree of recovery a lot faster.
32:20 And as Denise referenced, as we look at the corporate market,
32:24 once we start seeing the federal government opening a little bit
32:28 more, you'll see more corporate travel coming into Washington.
32:32 The international traveler for us,
32:34 it's going to be a long time in the US
32:35 before we're able to realize the numbers that we were receiving
32:39 or hosting prior to COVID.
32:42 So we're anticipating 12 to 18 months in terms of recovery
32:47 or longer, which is unfortunate.
32:50 And if you've been watching the news,
32:53 it doesn't take rocket science to figure out
32:56 if Europe chooses to close its borders to American visitors
33:01 or what that would mean.
33:02 I'm not sure what that actually is.
33:04 I'm sure.
33:04 I'm sure.
33:05 And that concerns us.
33:06 And to the point being made, we recognize--
33:11 that's why I made the point about safety in Washington, DC.
33:15 The fact that we're made up of 50 states and the District
33:18 of Columbia, they're all basically kingdoms,
33:21 if you will, within themselves.
33:22 And each one makes their own rules.
33:24 And unfortunately, some of those things will backfire.
33:27 We're hoping that the residual effect will not
33:30 be the inability to travel internationally both ways,
33:35 because that's going to be very important,
33:37 even though we realize that it would still take 12 to 18
33:40 months for it to recover.
33:41 So for us, with the US Travel Association,
33:44 it's really focusing on the fact that right now,
33:49 as we're in a process of figuring out
33:52 what we will do with our furloughed employees
33:54 and trying to keep the lights on, at some point,
33:58 when we're able to open back up, we
34:00 will not have the financial wherewithal
34:02 to do the marketing and promotion
34:04 that we need to be doing.
34:05 That's why we exist.
34:07 So US travel has been extremely important
34:10 in that particular area, as well as
34:13 some of the key priorities tied to tourism and other markets
34:18 for Washington and the rest of the US.
34:21 Yeah.
34:22 Yeah, no, absolutely.
34:23 And I think--
34:24 I mean, I did just want to touch on that, because it has been
34:26 in the news hugely the past couple of days,
34:30 especially the EU-US ban.
34:33 And of course, all of us feel that.
34:34 I want my parents to come visit my daughter.
34:36 I mean, it means a lot to a lot of people.
34:39 But you know, and someone just said,
34:41 I fear Europe will be out of reach,
34:42 along with so many other places for travelers in the US.
34:45 And I think right now, we just don't know, right?
34:47 I mean, there could be a breathalyzer test
34:50 that you get tested in 10 seconds
34:52 that comes out in the next two months, right?
34:54 I just read about it in Israel.
34:56 They invented it, right?
34:57 So we just-- we don't know, right, how you can--
35:00 how you can shut off borders.
35:01 You know, what are the ramifications of that?
35:04 You know, so I think that's--
35:06 you know, if you're perfectly healthy,
35:08 how can you show that you can travel?
35:09 I think there's a lot that's going to happen in the next
35:12 month or so that we just don't know yet.
35:15 And we're living in the news right now,
35:17 which is very negative, right?
35:20 But I don't think that's going to be long-term at all.
35:23 It can't be.
35:24 No.
35:25 And we're hoping that you're right, Annie.
35:28 You know, we are really wanting to get back on track.
35:32 A city like Washington, as you look at all the reasons
35:34 and all the things that we have to offer,
35:37 it's really in place, like in most cities, for visitors--
35:40 I mean, for our local community as well.
35:42 So it is very discouraging to see them shuttered
35:46 and really looking forward to that visitation coming back
35:50 to the city.
35:51 You know, the inverse of that is that because we've
35:54 been so careful here in wearing masks
35:56 and we're seeing declines in COVID cases,
35:59 we're also concerned about other parts of the US coming here.
36:03 As you've seen in other places like New York,
36:06 they're literally requiring other parts of the US
36:10 and those coming to those cities to quarantine for 14 days.
36:14 So I feel like we're taking steps backwards here
36:17 in terms of the progress.
36:19 But we still see in Washington some positive feedback
36:25 or desire for those to get back on the road and travel.
36:28 And that's kind of what we're making now.
36:30 And I also think, too--
36:31 I mean, me being in London, I'm probably a little more
36:34 positive just because of what is happening in Europe.
36:37 And even I said this, I think, last time or the time before.
36:40 Eight weeks ago, I was like, I'm not
36:42 going to Italy for a really long time.
36:44 Like, seeing the pictures of the northern Italy,
36:47 nope, that's OK.
36:48 And now I'm like, all right, I'll go to--
36:49 because I think our minds have the ability
36:51 to change quite quickly with new information.
36:53 So--
36:54 Right, and fortunately for us, we're
36:56 seeing advances in the science, which no one on this screen
37:01 can control what's happening.
37:04 We're really, really relying on medicine and science.
37:07 And they're giving us optimism by saying
37:09 there'll be a vaccine by the end of this year, if not sooner.
37:12 And we hope that that's the case.
37:14 Yeah.
37:15 Thank you, Elliot.
37:17 So Chris, too, I think, how do we bring the cruise
37:21 lines out of this overall?
37:23 There is a lot of nuance in cruising.
37:26 Not every line is the same.
37:28 But when we talked, you had something interesting to say,
37:30 too, about self-reporting allows for targeting.
37:33 And can you talk about that?
37:35 And also, the health of the travel advisor industry
37:38 being directly correlated with the health of the cruise
37:41 industry and why you support them so much as we recover.
37:45 Yeah, no, absolutely.
37:46 I mean, I'll start with that point,
37:48 because our travel advisor partners are just so critical,
37:51 always have been, always will be.
37:53 I think I said, Annie, to you, the health of the global cruise
37:58 industry is reliant on the health of the travel advisor.
38:04 And actually, probably vice versa as well.
38:08 We've enjoyed an amazing relationship.
38:10 And we will continue to enjoy a really healthy, amazing
38:13 relationship in the future.
38:16 I actually want to pick up a little bit also about something
38:19 we're all saying.
38:20 And that is also about how people
38:23 do want to get back to travel.
38:25 And I think it plays into the question
38:27 you've also asked about what do we do with the cruise industry.
38:31 We obviously, I think we've all been doing our surveys.
38:34 And we have surveys, all of our guests, every single week.
38:41 And we've seen sentiment change.
38:44 And there was a tipping point, actually, around early May,
38:48 where we started to see that guests, past guests,
38:53 and actually prospects, started to want to receive
38:56 promotional information.
38:58 Tell me where I need to be thinking about going.
39:01 Not tomorrow, necessarily, but in the future.
39:05 Get me out of my house.
39:07 Get me out of my house, exactly.
39:09 And I say, we're all dreamers, yes?
39:12 Everybody dreams of travel.
39:14 I would challenge anybody who says they don't to say,
39:18 I think you do, even if it's just a sort of a staycation
39:21 or something.
39:22 We're all dreamers.
39:23 But I think what we've seen is people
39:25 are shifting into that planning stage.
39:27 And that's exciting.
39:28 Where should we think of going when all this is finished?
39:32 One of my colleagues used the expression, revenge spending.
39:37 And I think it's actually a good statement.
39:39 So to say, I'm going to spend some dollars
39:41 and get out of here when we absolutely can.
39:45 We are now seeing these planners shift to bookers.
39:49 And of course, that will eventually become travelers.
39:52 And so we're seeing the chain really, really starting.
39:55 And I think, obviously, to get the cruise industry going
40:00 again, we need the support of the bodies and the governments,
40:04 the institutions.
40:07 We do believe, yes, that perhaps the cruise industry was
40:11 unfairly spoken of at various times
40:16 during the last four months or so.
40:19 And we don't like looking back in the rearview mirror.
40:23 We like to look forward.
40:24 But one thing I will say about the cruise industry
40:27 and looking back is the cruise industry's always
40:30 had incredibly high standards for health and safety,
40:34 again, not only for guests, but for crew in the destinations
40:37 where we visit.
40:38 We have hospitals on board.
40:40 Doctors, nurses.
40:42 We've had extra sinks to be able to wash your hands before you
40:47 go into a restaurant, sanitizing.
40:49 The way we've actually deep cleaned ships.
40:52 The reason why the cruise industry
40:55 is allowed to become under such a spotlight
40:57 is because we do report.
41:00 If somebody is ill, if they just have an influenza,
41:04 but they've gone to the hospital and seen the doctor,
41:06 we report that.
41:08 And there's no other part of the travel industry
41:10 or the hospitality industry that actually
41:12 does report in the same way.
41:15 So it puts certain optics on.
41:17 But I think it needs to then sort of distill that down
41:19 to say, well, actually, the cruise
41:21 industry is an incredibly safe option
41:24 for a wonderful vacation.
41:26 And of course, most of our guests,
41:28 Brett, you'll love to know, they always
41:30 stay in hotels before they stay in
41:32 on our beautiful floating hotel, our floating resort.
41:35 So we support the entire industry.
41:38 We support the destinations we go.
41:40 We support the airline industry, the hotel industry.
41:43 Most of our guests take private car and drive.
41:46 Guests take private jet travel as well.
41:48 And I think that's going to grow.
41:50 We're actually seeing-- we have a product, actually,
41:52 Annie--
41:53 I don't want to sell, but we have a product
41:55 called Seaborne Private Air.
41:57 And we've seen the number of requests
41:59 for quotations for Seaborne Private Air actually increasing.
42:04 And again, I think it just comes back to maybe the sum.
42:08 I think the small has some level of maybe it's a little safer.
42:14 But again, I don't think that's a one-size-fits-all.
42:16 I think there'll be plenty of people
42:19 that want to get to the Atlantis and have fun.
42:20 There'll be plenty of people that
42:22 want to sail a larger 4,000-plus passenger ship because
42:27 of the excitement that it can bring.
42:29 So yeah, we're going to get everybody back to travel.
42:32 And I'll finish my comment where I started
42:36 with the travel advisors, because the travel advisors
42:40 are a huge, powerful, collective voice.
42:44 And if they can harness that voice positively and say,
42:48 the cruise industry needs to be allowed to start,
42:51 and the governments need to support the cruise industry,
42:53 it will have a positive effect.
42:56 And actually, hats off to Zane Kirby, the CEO of Aster,
43:00 who did write a very thoughtful letter.
43:03 And I think others are following.
43:04 So let's hear that collective voice and do all of our part.
43:08 Absolutely.
43:09 I mean, that letter you were mentioning,
43:11 if anyone hasn't read it, it's really wonderful
43:14 and really supports it.
43:15 And he's doing such a great job advocating
43:18 for the whole industry, but cruises as well.
43:22 I did get a question, not to give you more work, Chris,
43:25 but this woman's wondering--
43:29 you bring up a lot of great points--
43:31 wondering if Seabourne has these bullet points on what
43:35 makes it one of the safest vacation options,
43:38 somewhere in a PDF to share with clients or travelers.
43:42 Absolutely.
43:42 No, we can definitely send our Why Seabourne information
43:47 and obviously why all of our travel advisors
43:50 and their guests certainly consider a cruise vacation
43:53 not a problem.
43:54 Take the challenge.
43:55 Yeah.
43:56 Thank you.
43:57 I know you're sitting around doing nothing,
43:59 so I just want to--
44:01 We'll add it to our 14-day week job.
44:04 [LAUGHTER]
44:07 I wanted to ask you--
44:09 you talked about, of course, leisure coming back.
44:11 Where do people want to go?
44:13 Where do they want to go the most?
44:15 And where are they booking?
44:17 Oh, sorry.
44:18 I'm going to unmute you.
44:21 OK.
44:22 OK, sorry about that.
44:23 I keep thinking I'm unmuted.
44:24 First, I'd like to-- can I go back to Chris for a moment?
44:26 Thank you for giving the plug to AST.
44:28 AST is Executive Board, and I also
44:30 chair the Corporate Advisory Council,
44:31 which is the corporate arm of AST as well.
44:34 And AST has been doing phenomenal work.
44:37 And hats off to Zane.
44:39 The team has done exceptional work up on the Hill.
44:42 Elliot, I'm sure you're aware of that as well,
44:44 but they've done just incredible work.
44:48 And I know that we're working with a couple of lobby firms
44:50 right now out there fighting for our entire industry.
44:54 It's not just for one particular sector,
44:57 but for all bodies in this industry.
44:59 And if you guys are not a part of AST, you should be.
45:04 I don't care what you do in this industry,
45:06 but go take a look at their website
45:08 and see what's happening and join,
45:10 because we're at war right now, and we should all
45:13 be a part of it.
45:14 So I just had to say that.
45:15 So where are people wanting to go?
45:19 Anywhere and everywhere.
45:21 And I think that's what's happening.
45:23 A lot of crews--
45:24 people do want to cruise, despite what--
45:27 you may be hearing both sides of the stories.
45:31 I'm afraid to cruise.
45:32 I won't get on a ship.
45:33 That's not true, people.
45:35 They want to go.
45:35 There's pent-up demand.
45:37 And they're looking for deals that are out there.
45:40 I think frustration is happening of when that will be.
45:44 We've had a lot of people book recently,
45:46 and they get frustrated with things being pushed back
45:50 in terms of opening.
45:51 When is that really going to be?
45:52 So Chris, to your point, we should band together and say,
45:56 it should be soon, because I think
45:58 that we're worried that it's going to get pushed back so
46:02 much that they may look for an alternative, which
46:04 means we won't lose a customer, but you might.
46:07 And other cruise lines may feel the same.
46:11 Lots of domestic trips, I get sometimes frustrated
46:15 with the news where they say, don't fly, drive.
46:19 And it's great for my car partners.
46:22 If they rent a car, but not so great if they don't,
46:24 because that means they're getting in their own vehicles,
46:27 and they're driving.
46:27 Great for some hotels, but not necessarily all the hotels
46:31 that would be our normal suppliers.
46:32 And I then worry about consistency with hotels
46:35 when we have no control over where that might be.
46:38 Yeah, right, exactly.
46:40 So we lose sight of them.
46:42 Duty of care comes into play.
46:44 And then they call us when they get into trouble,
46:46 when they plan something on their own.
46:48 So that's a concern of ours as well.
46:50 And then they call back for information
46:52 Elliott might have, Elliott who's
46:55 going to take great care of them when they're in places.
46:58 Like DC is a great destination.
47:00 They want to take advantage of all the wonderful things
47:03 we all know that DC has.
47:04 And if you don't know, you should be calling Elliott
47:06 and finding out about it.
47:07 But that's one of the great destinations.
47:10 But a lot of international people want to go to Europe.
47:14 They want to go to Hawaii, but they
47:15 don't want to deal with the 14-day quarantine right now.
47:20 Mexico--
47:20 Wasn't that just today?
47:22 We just talked about it on a Farris channel
47:24 is that you can show negative--
47:26 Probably today.
47:26 I haven't even talked to my office.
47:27 Probably today.
47:28 So I know that that was a pent up--
47:31 yeah, that was a pent up destination for a long time
47:34 for us.
47:35 A lot of Tahiti for us.
47:36 People are looking to go remote.
47:38 They think that if they go somewhere remote, which
47:40 I think was what was happening with the Maldives,
47:43 and as far away as they can get with something tropical,
47:45 something beachy, we're getting a lot of that.
47:48 I have people mad over not being able to get
47:51 to Tahiti and some of these other places
47:52 where things were postponed.
47:55 They still want to go.
47:57 Europe is huge for us.
47:59 And now this thing with Europe and the EU,
48:02 I had one customer said, when did we become the third world
48:04 country?
48:05 I said, when we couldn't get our 50 states to unite and be
48:08 consistent with whatever we're supposed to be doing.
48:11 And to Elliott, your point earlier, if we break out,
48:13 we become all these 50 little kingdoms
48:15 because we're forced to until we get that together.
48:18 I'm not sure what we're going to do.
48:19 But again, I'm hopeful.
48:21 I'm hopeful that we can figure it out because we'll need to.
48:26 But I think that, again, Europe is huge.
48:29 Portugal is a big one.
48:31 Egypt was really hot, not the weather, but the destination.
48:36 But now we have to put Egypt on hold.
48:40 Dubai has always been popular.
48:42 But people--
48:43 So basically everywhere.
48:45 Everywhere.
48:46 Everywhere is hot.
48:47 Everywhere that's open.
48:48 Yeah.
48:50 We're hearing more--
48:51 I was talking to Ellen the other day--
48:52 more about separate vacations with spouses,
48:55 girls trip, boys trip, or boy-boy trip, whatever.
48:58 [INAUDIBLE]
48:59 Travel advisors, right?
49:00 They're relationship advisors.
49:01 And--
49:02 Relationship advisors.
49:03 People are a little tired of being together as a family
49:05 and maybe want to separate as a family for a little while.
49:08 So whatever works.
49:09 Awesome.
49:10 Thank you.
49:10 I mean, Brett, with that, can you
49:12 talk about your new openings?
49:13 Because, I mean, you had Rwanda last year, late last year.
49:17 And now you have some other incredible properties opening,
49:19 which are still opening, despite everything that's happening.
49:25 So at the end of last year, we opened our second property
49:27 in Rwanda, which was Gorilla's Nest, which was--
49:31 obviously, Rwanda-- I don't need to tell this panel
49:35 or this audience.
49:35 I mean, Rwanda was absolutely the hot destination for 2020.
49:39 So we opened into great tailwinds and great success
49:45 and amazing forward pace.
49:47 Just on the note of Rwanda-- so that's obviously
49:50 one of the many Gorilla's Nests, and the second resort,
49:52 which is one of many in Nyungwe.
49:54 The interesting thing is that the national parks
49:56 are open in Rwanda.
49:58 The hotel's armed.
49:59 You can't actually get there.
50:00 But you can go trekking with a gorilla
50:02 if you can figure out how to go there.
50:05 Additionally, in terms of new openings for this year,
50:08 we have our first one only in Europe,
50:11 which is one only in Montenegro, which
50:13 will open on the 1st of October.
50:16 That will feature our first Chano Spa.
50:19 So on Chano, which is extremely well-known for his wellness
50:23 retreats in Milan and Baku, we will
50:27 be having a full Chano experience in that property.
50:30 So we're very excited to have our first footing in Europe.
50:35 Closer to the audience is a very exciting opening
50:40 in Mexico, which is one only in Mandarina.
50:43 And that's opening on the 1st of November.
50:45 And I think will be probably one of the most exciting resorts--
50:48 and I'm not biased--
50:49 but it will be one of the most exciting resorts
50:51 to open this year and even into 2021.
50:56 It's a super sexy resort just north of Punta Mita,
51:01 set in a beautiful tropical lush forest on the cliffside.
51:06 Very, very unique experience and a unique treehouse villa
51:11 product that we'll bring to market.
51:14 And then coming a little bit closer is, in time at least,
51:18 on the 6th of September, we're opening our first one
51:21 only in Asia, which is one only in the Deseru Coast, which
51:25 is at the tip of Malaysia, very close to Singapore, which
51:30 is predominantly for staycation business
51:31 out of Singapore and Malaysia.
51:33 So despite all of the challenges that we've
51:37 been facing this year, we've been
51:39 able to push on and opening three hotels in addition
51:43 to reopening all of the existing portfolios.
51:46 So myself and my team and all of us
51:50 are going to be incredibly busy as the year unfolds ahead of us.
51:54 That's very exciting.
51:55 And again, I'll look for your backup
51:57 to make sure that you're--
51:58 Approved points, don't forget on me.
52:00 I'll need to approve that.
52:02 No, but it is really good to hear.
52:04 And I think everyone on the call seems to be
52:07 experiencing the same thing.
52:08 It's just frustration with borders that aren't open,
52:13 confusion, overwhelming information changing every day.
52:16 I mean, there was a question about how do we sell
52:18 international or talk about international travel
52:20 when we can't assure that the flights are
52:23 reliable returning to the US.
52:26 I mean, Ellen and I were talking earlier about 2021 is there.
52:32 People are dreaming and planning for 2021.
52:34 So that's happening.
52:36 But Denise, do you have any insight
52:38 into that as to what you would tell someone?
52:39 How do you sell international right now, not knowing?
52:44 I did before yesterday.
52:48 I think we just take it one day at a time.
52:51 We do 70% international on the corporate side.
52:54 And I would say that we just have
52:56 to figure out what's happening.
52:58 We're staying close to our airline partners
53:01 to make sure the scheduling is there.
53:02 That's probably the biggest piece besides safety.
53:05 I mean, safety being number one and making sure that we
53:08 can get into those countries.
53:10 Obviously, if you're a corporate traveler,
53:12 you have your passport, you have your global entry,
53:14 and you make sure all of that is up.
53:16 Don't forget that as we're sitting at home
53:20 and we're taking care of all these conference calls
53:25 and forgetting about not being a road warrior.
53:28 I have to remind people, somebody said the other day,
53:30 oh, I forgot all about my global entry.
53:33 You can do that versus your passport.
53:35 Passport offices, we're hoping that they'll
53:38 get back on track soon.
53:39 But people are forgetting about global entry.
53:42 So please take care of that.
53:43 If you get the email, do it.
53:44 They are behind as well.
53:46 But the countries, pay attention.
53:49 Work with your travel advisor.
53:51 Make sure what's happening.
53:52 Countries are starting to open.
53:54 And--
53:55 And watch people who are traveling, right?
53:57 I mean, I think that's people who can travel.
54:00 There's a lot of information from your travel companies.
54:02 We're a BCD affiliate.
54:04 They've been giving us great information on airports
54:06 and things like that.
54:07 We're able to pass that out to our customers right away.
54:11 They're even given little maps with little checkpoints
54:14 telling you, here's what to expect
54:15 at this particular airport.
54:16 If you can get your hands on things like that, it's great.
54:19 So be proactive.
54:20 That will give you a reason to talk to those customers
54:22 and stay engaged.
54:23 Our account management team is talking to them weekly.
54:27 Our meetings and incentive-- we have a whole meetings
54:29 and incentive division.
54:30 We've had to figure out how to deal with--
54:32 like, Elliot, you were talking about your particular city.
54:35 You're at that stage where you're 50 and below.
54:37 So meetings that are above that--
54:39 I know ASTA, we had our global convention
54:41 that was supposed to happen in August.
54:42 And we had to cancel that because we go way above that.
54:45 Size we're over 1,000 people usually.
54:47 And so we're going to have a virtual event.
54:49 And so we can get to some of our smaller events.
54:51 So we've had to adjust with those types of customers
54:53 as well.
54:55 So it's just a matter of staying in terms of communication.
54:58 And international is the same thing.
55:00 But mostly, you've got to figure out
55:02 if the planes are going to be flying there
55:03 and the country is going to let us in.
55:05 Exactly.
55:06 Day to day.
55:06 Day to day.
55:07 Day to day.
55:07 I'm still waiting.
55:08 I have a trip to Spain.
55:09 We'll see if they let me in.
55:10 They're going to let you in.
55:11 Yeah.
55:12 They're going to let you in.
55:14 So really quick, go around.
55:16 Where do you want to go tomorrow?
55:17 I want to go to Rasika for Indian food in DC.
55:21 Where do you want to go tomorrow if you travel tomorrow?
55:23 Chris?
55:25 Where would I love to go tomorrow?
55:27 If I could, I'd probably love to fly to Mykonos,
55:30 Sanctuary, the Greek Isles, board the Seabourn Odyssey,
55:34 and have an amazing Greek vacation.
55:37 Why not?
55:38 Amazing.
55:38 That's what people are searching for, apparently.
55:40 Jeremy, where do you want to go?
55:42 I was actually supposed to be in Kenya and Tanzania right now.
55:46 So that's where I would go.
55:47 I'd pick up the trip that I was supposed to be taking right now.
55:52 Elliot, what about you?
55:54 You know, I'd love to go to the Bahamas.
55:56 My dad's from there.
55:57 I love Atlantis.
55:59 Jeremy-- I mean, Brett, I've seen the property in Sanya,
56:04 which is under--
56:06 no one knows about Sanya except for--
56:08 You and me.
56:08 --most people in the world.
56:09 Yes.
56:10 I stayed at the addition, but it is incredible.
56:12 I checked it out while it was being built.
56:15 I'd say Paradise Island, Bahamas, right now.
56:19 Yeah, Atlantis.
56:21 Denise?
56:23 I'm coming to see you, Annie.
56:24 We already talked about it.
56:25 Yeah, exactly.
56:26 We're going to have tea together.
56:27 That's right.
56:29 Perfect.
56:30 Brett?
56:32 Well, I am actually going to come and see you,
56:34 because I'm booked.
56:34 Exactly.
56:35 Your kids are waiting.
56:37 Three days ago, Dubai announced that residents can travel.
56:40 So I booked.
56:41 And so on the 10th of July, I'm flying to London
56:44 to see my kids that I've not seen since February.
56:47 So yeah, see you there, Annie.
56:50 Exactly.
56:50 The pubs are waiting.
56:51 I'll come and visit you.
56:54 And Ellen, I'll leave it with you to close.
56:57 So I was supposed to be leaving for Italy today
56:59 for a two and a half week holiday.
57:02 So that's not happening, obviously.
57:03 But I am getting on my first flight to the West Coast
57:07 to hit the wine country on Tuesday.
57:10 So I'm very excited about that.
57:12 Then I have the Caribbean in August.
57:14 And just for a little more hope, we had a sip and sail this week.
57:20 And next year, hopefully, it's going to be seaborne, Chris.
57:23 But we are scheduled to do a river
57:25 cruise for a far audience.
57:28 And that is scheduled for November 2nd in Amsterdam,
57:32 going down the Rhine to Basel.
57:36 And we just got two more bookings this week.
57:38 So I would say that although we're not sure where we can go
57:43 and when we can do it and how it's going to happen,
57:46 clearly, there's pent up demand and optimism
57:49 that we will be able to navigate.
57:51 And we just finished our second survey at Afar.
57:55 We've been monitoring our audience for both content
57:57 and to provide for our partners more insight.
58:01 And it hadn't changed much over the month
58:03 that we surveyed, where a continual 2/3
58:08 continue to book and plan right now.
58:10 So as Annie said earlier, whether it's 2021 or this year,
58:15 interestingly, they shifted some of the destinations
58:18 where now they are adding back in some of the destinations
58:23 that were not available to them a month ago.
58:26 So they're very much paying attention
58:28 to where they can travel.
58:29 And that's where they're saying they will travel first.
58:32 So if anyone wants any of that survey detail on the call,
58:36 please do let us know at Afar.
58:38 And I'm happy to share it.
58:39 And then just lastly, I love Jeremy
58:42 talking about how taking people beyond the headlines.
58:47 It's something that we all desire and we all need.
58:51 And I am very hopeful that we will continue
58:54 to move around the world.
58:55 And the more one of us do it, the more all of us will do it.
58:58 So in the meantime, build your immune system,
59:02 because this is something we all need to focus on.
59:05 So I know Brett and I talk about this all the time.
59:08 And Chris knows me well, as do many of you on the call.
59:12 But building your immune system will
59:14 allow you to travel the world without as much fear as those
59:17 who do not have a strong immune system.
59:19 So I will leave you with that hope
59:21 and look forward to seeing you on July 9, which
59:24 is our next live chat.
59:27 We will take a break for July 4 week.
59:30 So wishing you all a great July 4 for those who celebrate it.
59:34 And look forward to more together.
59:36 Thank you.
59:37 Thanks, Anne.
59:37 Thanks, all.
59:38 Hope to see you guys soon.
59:39 Thank you.
59:40 Thank you all.
59:41 Bye.
59:42 Thanks.
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