Staycations shine ray of hope to the hospitality industry during lockdown
Milliam Murigi @millymur1
Kenyans are now taking up staycations as a way of relaxing and breaking away from the boredorm of staying indoors, considering they are limited on the number of locations they can visit during this lockdown.
This has lifted the hoteliers’ mood as it will help their businesses remain afloat during the pandemic.
Staycations are a type of vacation where instead of travelling, you stay at a nearby hotel and you are involved in day trips to local attractions.
“As partial lockdown and travel restrictions exist, our customers have sought to act on their pent-up desire to get out of the house by focusing on staycations, especially in Nairobi,” said Hasnain Noorani, PrideInn Group Managing Director and Founder.
He notes that staycation uptake, especially for Nairobi hotels has been growing during this time because tourists from the red zone areas are unable to travel throughout the country.
Though people used to take staycations over the weekend or during school holidays, things are now changing and every day of the week is now equally important.
“Over the Easter weekend, we saw an unanticipated surge in bookings from domestic merrymakers.
Our Nairobi hotel saw an increase in the overall Easter staycation market this year compared to March 2020 when Covid-19 had just hit the country,” says Noorani.
While large-scale travel will be one of the last element of normal society to recover from the Coronavirus pandemic, domestic tourism will be in the meantime the industry lifeline.
With lockdown and social distancing restrictions easing across the globe, domestic tourism is set to play a vital role in the rebuilding of economies and act as an indicator for the health and security of nations.
“We have found new ways of relaxing and enjoying ourselves. One thing is certain, an altered lifestyle has emerged as a result of this crisis.
Some businesses have been shut, hived off, and in some cases, they have thrived exponentially.
The key to surviving and subsequently thrive depends on how innovative we in the hospitality industry are,” said Farzana Zahir, PrideInn Group Sales and Marketing Director.
