Marriot will be rolling out new optional coronavirus protocols next month to bring back in-person meetings and conferences.
The hotel chain already has a list of safety procedures that were rolled out for guests during the coronavirus pandemic, including mandatory face masks and decreased meeting seating capacities. However, the hospitality giant’s newly announced suite of “health protocols” target a specific travel segment: “meeting professionals” for conferences and gatherings.
These protocols, which are optional, include mobile health screenings, temperature scans, and both on-site and pre-travel self-administered COVID-19 tests.
“We engaged industry-leading experts and through a thorough review process, identified third-party providers capable of offering the health protocols that meeting professionals want and need for future events,” Marriott’s senior vice president of global sales organization Tammy Routh said in a statement on the news release.
Marriott will roll out the new safety measures at Gaylord Hotels and Resorts in Florida, Tennessee, Texas, and Colorado starting January 2021. The same protocols will be made available at other Marriott owned hotels across the US a few weeks later.
The newly announced optional protocols follow Marriott’s recent list of offerings and requirements meant to facilitate in-person meetings and events during COVID-19 times.
In November, the hospitality giant also hosted its first hybrid event with 30 in-person and 238 virtual participants, as well as new safety measures, at the Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner in Virginia. Read more: Jefferies says buy these 2 hospitality REITs in a major upgrade on the back of the vaccine news
Despite these new coronavirus-oriented offerings, several experts and analysts predict corporate travel will not return to normal for several years. According to Bank of America, the hotel industry could lose between $8 billion to $23 billion in 2020 alone from the loss of business trips, which makes up half of the hotel industry’s revenue.
