The Presidential Election Is Also Tanking the Travel Industry

Ten years ago, Dan Sherman could have told you that tourism was going to take a big dip in 2020. But Sherman isn’t an epidemiologist with a crystal ball. He’s a travel industry veteran who’s been watching booking trends for long enough to know that economic downturns happen in predictable, four-year cycles. The fiscal uncertainty surrounding presidential elections, it turns out, can knock sales down by more than 30% compared to a normal year—costing some companies billions of dollars in lost revenues.

Sherman, the chief marketing officer of Ski.com, gets off comparatively easy. Skiers are committed travelers who hospitality marketing professionals consider to be almost unshakeable; still, however, there are small signs of flagging devotion. “Normally, half of our reservations are completed before Thanksgiving,” Sherman explains.