In anticipation of the planned reopening of America to vaccinated international travelers on Nov. 8, business travel industry leaders Corporate Traveler and FCM released the following statement today:
“Business travel experts, Corporate Traveler and FCM, have been eagerly awaiting November 8 as America reopens its land border to fully vaccinated international travelers after more than 18 months. We embrace this development as a positive milestone for the industry and a critical building block toward the long-term recovery of corporate travel.
“While Canada began allowing fully vaccinated travelers to enter from the U.S. on August 9, the U.S. land border has remained closed to international visitors for non-essential travel, resulting in the border operating under two sets of rules. Our research shows that both businesses and consumers are ready to return to travel and having consistency on both sides of the border will have an immediate impact on demand.
“In fact, since the announcement earlier this fall, we have witnessed a notable surge in interest toward U.S. destinations. This rise in interest echoes the streak of growth the company is witnessing in bookings elsewhere, specifically a 35 percent year-over-year gain from July to September 2021. We expect a similarly positive rebound in international traffic and economic revenues is in North America’s horizons as well.
“We offer travel management solutions to a wide array of companies across the globe, ranging from small to mid-size enterprises through our Corporate Traveler brand as well as larger corporations working with us through FCM. Across our entire portfolio, we feel that this news signals a growing confidence in vaccination rates and will better equip our industry to return to business at a more accelerated pace leading into 2022.
“At the same juncture, as more of us return to the skies and roadways, we encourage our fellow travelers to remain vigilant and to practice responsible tourism on their journeys.”
Corporate Traveler is the only global TMC catering exclusively to start-ups and mid-market businesses. Established in 1993, the company is present in seven countries where it provides expert tailored advice, dedicated travel managers, and innovative, advanced booking technology to more than 14,000 customers worldwide in a typical year. Being part of industry powerhouse the Flight Centre Travel Group, access to a competitively priced, truly global inventory alongside added-value benefits and exclusive deals comes as standard. Corporate Traveler recently unveiled Melon – its new proprietary, on-the-go travel management platform featuring intuitive navigation and a seamless end-to-end online experience to help customers easily book, manage, and measure the performance of their business travel programs. For more information, visit www.corporatetraveler.us/en-us.
FCM is one of the largest global travel management companies with a 24/7 reach in over 100 countries. As the flagship business travel division of the ASX-listed Flight Centre Travel Group, FCM has the leverage to deliver access to the widest network of airfares, hotels, and ground transport for unique and best-value travel solutions. Thousands of national and multi-national organizations including many household brands, Fortune and FTSE 100 companies, rely on FCM’s intuitive technology and expert teams to move their business travellers effortlessly and maximize their return on investment. https://www.fcmtravel.com/en-us
