According to its own statements, the Swiss tour operator Hotelplan Suisse is recording the most difficult business year in its 85-year history. This is concluded with deep red numbers and sales are also expected for the next 12 months that will be half the value that was recorded before the pandemic.

Hotelplan started 2020 with a high number of bookings, but everything changed in mid-March. Initially, around 2.000 customers had to be brought back to Switzerland in cooperation with the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. This was followed by a wave of cancellations on an unprecedented scale. After the border opening in Europe in mid-June 2020, there was brief hope that the damage could be kept within reasonable limits and that summer and autumn holidays abroad would still be possible as usual. Because of the list of risk countries introduced by the Federal Office of Public Health (BAG), this hope faded a short time later.

Due to entry restrictions, flight cancellations or changes to the flight plan, as well as the BAG's list of risk countries, Hotelplan Suisse has had to cancel trips by around 2020 customers since mid-March 100. Thanks to Migros as a shareholder, the company never had a liquidity problem and was always able to keep its package travel customers harmless. “We promptly refunded all canceled package tours. The reimbursements from the service providers - especially the airlines - were unfortunately very slow. Because of this, the payment of individual services to our customers is unfortunately also delayed, ”explains Tim Bachmann, CEO Hotelplan Suisse.

The company is convinced that the demand for holidays abroad will increase significantly again as soon as a vaccine against the coronavirus is found and the entry restrictions of the various destinations are lifted. The Swiss tour operator has therefore dealt intensively in recent months with the likely resumption of travel activities in the next year and is preparing accordingly for the restart. At this point in time, however, it is hardly possible to make a forecast for the current financial year (November 1, 2020 to October 31, 2021), as the course of the corona pandemic cannot be foreseen. Hotelplan Suisse currently assumes that around 50% of sales can be achieved compared to the financial year before the corona pandemic (2018/2019). This is on the condition that travel will again be much more limitless than it is now by spring 2021 at the latest.

In the current extremely volatile situation, it is difficult to forge vacation plans. However, Hotelplan Suisse is currently recording bookings for vacations in the Canary Islands, the Maldives and in Costa Rica, among others. “Mr and Mrs Swiss should already dream of their next vacation abroad. Our employees in the branches are available at any time for appropriate consultations. However, we recommend booking your next vacation as soon as possible, ”says Tim Bachmann.

Despite the numerous challenges, Hotelplan Suisse is optimistic about the future. With the broad portfolio of the Migros Ferien, Hotelplan, Travelhouse and Tourisme Pour Tous brands, the company covers all of its customers' travel needs and can continually add to the product range according to customer needs. “As a reliable partner, our customers can always rely on us. Our shareholder Migros has promised us its support for the next few years and we are convinced that we will emerge stronger from the Corona crisis, ”concluded Tim Bachmann.