Prodinger Tourismusberatung presents a sober outlook on the development of the hotel industry in its latest trend report for the year 2022. According to current knowledge, virus mutations will continue to occur in the future. However, according to AGES (Austrian Agency for Health and Food Security), the hotel industry has a minimal share of just one to two percent in the pandemic.

“Hotels are evidence-based safe places and not carriers of the pandemic. The solution to the problem therefore certainly does not lie in the often fatal suspension of economic cycles, ”the authors of the report, Thomas Reisenzahn and Marco Riederer, criticize the wrong approach of many politicians.

Numerous companies are now economically badly hit, and a lot of equity has been burned in the last two years. In order to be able to keep up in the future, new ideas and adjustments are needed, from the offer to the operational management. It is important to identify upcoming topics early on in order to deal with possible negative consequences.

The authors see tax audits as a problem area, for example, which will reach “new dimensions” in the coming year. This concerns possible reclaims of aid money received or improper use. Overcompensation could also be determined. There are plenty of indefinite terms in the guidelines that leave a lot of room for interpretation and can be problematic in specific cases. The drama of the (too) low equity ratios will worsen significantly. Small companies in particular suffer from increased investment risks as a result. Prodinger Tourismusberatung proposes a transitional arrangement that is limited to December 21.12.2022, XNUMX, according to which the assets (the hidden reserves) can be upgraded with the quarter tax rate and the balance sheets show the real equity. This strengthens the creditworthiness and increases the long-term depreciation basis. That would also be a major relief for the many pending company handovers.

The "industry exodus" that is taking place on the part of many employees must be responded to urgently with suitable measures. A shortage of employees and rising costs can only be compensated for by higher prices plus digitization plus automation. “High quality service will cost a lot more in the future. The guests will have to get used to it, ”says the view.

“Sustainability” is another area to which the hotel industry has to find answers and offers. “Sustainability” must not be a disgrace to publicity, but must be close to the hearts of all stakeholders. “It is not the goal, but a permanent path,” write the authors. Various alternative forms of accommodation (currently also for reasons of social distancing), such as serviced apartments, chalets and Airbnb, will continue to gain in importance. We are looking for near-natural accommodation concepts. “A lot has happened in our consciousness. This opens up new opportunities for accommodation providers when it comes to designing their offers, not least with regard to architecture and concepts ”.

As the authors continue to write, the city hotel industry will not recover until 2024. Holiday destinations with robust domestic tourism will have a similar booking situation in summer 2022 as in 2020 and 2021.

The radical disruption caused by the previous four lockdowns did not change social routines evolutionarily, but rather disrupted them. “The travel needs of the guests have not fundamentally changed,” conclude Reisenzahn and Riederer. However, new trends can be observed in business travel behavior and the increase in “hybrid events”. In general, there is increasing skepticism towards "over-digitization" and a new way back to analogity. "Digital Detox" stands for a more conscious use of smartphones and other devices connected to the Internet. In vacation and leisure, where rest and relaxation are very important, this can become the basis of attractive new offers.