News & Stories
Berlin. Germany and some of its neighbours loosened individual borders on Tuesday, with other countries following suit today. On 15 June, travel controls are to be dropped. That is the plan – under one condition: The number of infections must remain low. The entire tourism industry will thus remain under immense pressure to survive. The associations press the SOS button together.
Munich. The shutdown has been imposed by the government, but the guests will decide about a successful re-start. At the same time, owners, operators and other stakeholders are asked to find common solutions. This is not easy. Prof. Dr. Werner Pauen, former Chief Financial Officer of Accor and Dorint, lecturer for real estate management today and sworn expert, sets discussions of the last weeks and positions straight objectively: about rents, government assistance, staff members, directives by authorities and zero profitability under the current circumstances…
Wiesbaden. In German-speaking Europe, the hotel industry is in full restart mode. Everyone is focused on just one issue: What are the best activities to get rooms full again and how can a decline in room rates be avoided? The bad guys here are once again the OTAs, who are themselves now also in hot water.
Vienna. Austria has been the first country in Europe to announce the re-start of its tourism and the hotel industry. This week, five federal states in Germany followed; the rules and discussions are similar. In the middle of it, there are the Falkensteiner Hotels & Residences, based in Vienna – the company originated in South Tyrol and grew from a family business to a group with 30 properties in seven European countries. Since 2019, the group has only focused on holiday resorts. Resorts will be the first properties to gather pace again. "However, we should throw some ballast overboard, start thinking new and stop dragging along old and unnecessary costs," says Falkensteiner's CEO Otmar Michaeler.
Berlin. The restart of German tourism was postponed again yesterday – without a date, without prospects. Chancellor Merkel and her state presidents are postponing decisions on the industry from week to week.
Wiesbaden. Instead of having to repay any sums customers have already paid for booked rooms or trips which have been cancelled owing to corona travel restrictions, vouchers to be used for the payment of equivalent services at a later point are one means of securing essential liquidity for many tourism companies. The German government wants to mandate the acceptance of such vouchers, but so far failed to be able to do so as a result of EU law. Now, each company is working individually on ways to convince customers to accept vouchers - in some cases by expanding the services offered. Will this prevent the collapse?
Augsburg. The global standstill in tourism produces horror figures. At the same time, the panic of tourism providers and hotel entrepreneurs is increasing, now also in otherwise so level-headed Germany. The voices after the easing of restrictions and freedom of travel are getting louder. Politicians are holding out against it. And Mecklenburg-Vorpommern is creating its own facts: The coastal destination wants to welcome tourists starting May 1.
Berlin. The coalition committee in the German Bundestag responded to a demand by Dehoga during the night from Wednesday to Thursday by lowering the VAT rate for food served in restaurants from 1 July, 2020 for a limited period until June 30, 2021. It should be clear to all those involved that this measure alone will not be enough to save hotels and restaurants from the current crisis.
Berlin. Currently, German Dorint Hotels are losing one million euros in turnover per day; Motel One is losing 20 million euros in liquidity per month at the moment. Most hotel groups are not even commenting on their misery. The crux, however, remain the rent respites, which do not help the hotel industry at the moment – just as most KfW loans also do not. 70,000 insolvencies are imminent, according to the German Hotel and Restaurant Association. However, the association does not officially support a moratorium, as proposed by Motel One and ZIA, the German Property Federation. Instead, it is celebrating the reduction of the value-added tax for the gastronomy, which was accepted by the Federal Government on Wednesday evening – but is limited to one year only.
Berlin. The priorities of an umbrella organisation and concrete proposals are what get through to the politicians. The general demand for a reduced value added tax is the completely wrong signal, which results in the German Hotel and Restaurant Association failing in the current corona crisis with its existence-threatening financial difficulties, says Frank Stauss from Berlin. The renowned political consultant is a more frequent guest on talk shows than Ingrid Hartges, Dehoga's leader.