New Look for Travel and Travelers

The look of travel, especially by air, continues to change --- and we’re especially aware of that today. 

The Look of Travel brings to mind clothing – what we wear.  Think back a few decades and remember that appropriate dress when flying meant coats, ties, dresses and high heels.  Fast forward to a more recent time (2019) and the definition became clothing that was “comfortable”:  jeans, yoga pants, flip flops.

Today, in this new decade any of those ‘comfortable” clothes may show up, however, now we have new accessories:  masks and gloves and we carry bottles of hand sanitizer or packages of wipes.

Yet it isn’t just the look of travelers that’s changing.  According to Wunderman-Thompson airports, airplanes, even shuttles are changing.    The changes won’t mimic the design of Jewel Changi Airport in Singapore (https://www.jewelchangiairport.com/).  A stunning new complex, opened barely a year ago.  Thought to set a new standard for airports.  Now, maybe not.   Described on Wikipedia as “a nature-themed entertainment and retail complex linked to three of its passenger terminals. Its centerpiece is the world's tallest indoor waterfall, the Rain Vortex, which is surrounded by a terraced forest setting.”  Makes one want to fly to Singapore just to see it. 

However, that’s not what’s coming to airport design in 2020.  The airport that is evolving now, as described in the Wunderman-Thompson Intelligence Brief of July 6, 2020, (https://intelligence.wundermanthompson.com) is an one  “that shields personal space and protects individual health”.  

Some things you may see: 

Sofas that encourage proper distancing,

Spaces designed to optimize sanitation and facilitate cleaning

A transparent hood that can be fixed onto existing seats.

From the spaces that accommodate travelers to the vehicles that bring them there, the backdrop of tourism is being reimagined in the wake of COVID-19.   Rather than dramatic vistas, forests and services, today’s travel environment is focused on health and safety.  The look and feel of travel, what we wear, where we sit, what surrounds us continues to change.  What’s next?   Let’s go and find out.