How to Reduce Post-Pandemic Travel Anxiety

While most of us are raring to get back out into the big wide world, face masks, health scares, social distancing, vaccinations, and round-the-clock pandemic news can make even the toughest among us confused and anxious.

So common is this post-pandemic social anxiety that an American Psychological Association survey found that roughly half of respondents said they were uneasy about returning to in-person interaction once the pandemic ends. In fact, for many, this newfound freedom has come hand-in-hand with anxiety for the first time in their lives.

They’re not alone. Researchers in Copenhagen developed the Pandemic Anxiety Travel Scale (PATs) to gauge and predict how the pandemic has affected travel behaviors. It takes just 21 days to form a habit, and the majority of us have now had well over 365 days of working from home, hours a day inside the same four walls, and little contact with others. We’ve become creatures of habit.

We’ve formed new routines, created new rituals, planned our daily patterns, and got accustomed to technology that makes social distancing easier. Mobile phone and video conferencing use have peaked in the last year, along with content streaming. Millions more are using voice-controlled digital assistants paired with smart technology as a way to avoid commonly-touched surfaces like TV remotes, light switches, thermostats and door handles. We’ve changed the way we live, work, and play forever.

As business and personal travel return, hotels are acutely aware of their responsibility to follow strict cleaning and safety protocols, but there’s also an opportunity to ease the tension guests are feeling by letting them use familiar technologies and follow similar behaviors at a hotel.

This new, free eBook from Nomadix considers the habits that guests have formed during the pandemic and proposes ways that hotels can incorporate these in a new guest experience. With a checklist of subtle changes that hotels can make in guest rooms and common areas, getting back on the road can be done without this newly developed angst.

Download the full eBook here: Tips To Reduce Post-Pandemic Travel Anxiety