Dear Yara Traveler, Two years of global pandemic has impacted the entire travel industry significantly. We can say for certain that business travel is returning and as restrictions continue to be lifted, we expect further increase in bookings over the coming weeks and months. While this development is very positive it is important that you as a traveler are aware that booking a business trip today is a different experience to what it was in 2019. • The entire travel industry is still impacted by the pandemic. For example, many airlines are still operating at reduced capacity so the number of flight options visible in booking tools will be fewer than before the pandemic. Many airlines have parked their old aircrafts and waiting for new deliveries which impact the availability on routes, timings, and seat capacity. As a result of the lack of availability on routes and seat capacity, we see an increase in prices domestically, in Europe and international. Additionally, the airlines are introducing air fares that are not available in the travel agencies booking tools and these are mainly very low fares intended on the leisure market with restrictions and the travelers need to purchase ancillary services such as luggage, seating, meals, flexibility etc. • Every day we are notified of severe service disruptions due to shortage of staff in both airports and airlines, resulting in flight cancellations and further reducing the number of travel options. This adds to increased call volumes to GBT as travelers will need support to rebook and re-plan their itineraries causing longer hold-time when calling the GBT team. • Fewer travel options in combination with an increased need to validate information means that we are seeing more calls per completed booking and each call now takes longer time as our travel counselors work hard to find options that fits your needs. What can you do to help? 1. Need to book a simple return trip? Book online, it’s quick and open 24/7. 2. If your travel request is not urgent, try placing your call in the morning hours. We typically see more calls and longer hold-times in the afternoon. 3. Make sure to use Amex GBT Travel Vitals for access to travel guidance and government requirements related to COVID-19 prior to calling us. 4. For Neo online booking tool markets, make sure to download the Amex GBT Mobile App before you hit the road to get your trip information at your fingertips, get notifications or chat with our travel counsellors for assistance! Argo, Concur OBT and Serko are all providing Mobile App’s with the possibility to book your trips. We apologize upfront for any inconvenience and want to assure you that we are doing everything we can to keep service levels at the level you as a traveler expect from us. American Express Global Business Travel (GBT) is a joint venture that is not wholly owned by American Express Company or any of its subsidiaries (American Express). “American Express Global Business Travel,” “American Express,” and the American Express logo are trademarks of American Express and are used under limited license. Page 1 of 1
Enter the password to open this PDF file:
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-