Real Estate

The Hotel Landing Riding Out COVID-19 Storm, Wayzata Residents Reconsider Overseas Trips

Dan Gustafson

The COVID-19 pandemic has been incredibly challenging for the staff of Wayzata’s The Hotel Landing, restaurant ninetwentyfive and Läka Spa.

“Like most all hotels in the state, and the country for that matter, we were faced with unfathomable declines in demand and revenues,” said The Hotel Landing Area Director of Sales & Marketing Diane Reardon. “That coupled with the concerns for the health and safety of our staff, guests and communities created challenges we couldn’t have dreamed possible back in February.”

There have been more than 24,000 direct hotel-related jobs lost in Minnesota due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Like hotels across the country, the significant impact of the pandemic put us in the heartbreaking situation of having to furlough many of our employees and eliminate positions,” said Reardon. “Since the outset of the pandemic, we have worked diligently to support our team even while they have been out of work. We, along with our management company Sage Hospitality Group, launched an associate relief fund that allowed us to provide our out-of-work associates with care packages of food and other necessary household items.”
Travel spending in Minnesota year-to-date is down 83% as of the week ending May 23  according to the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA).
“Initially, we of course saw a huge decline in every kind of travel and business at our hotel,” said Reardon. “Currently, we are seeing pickup in leisure travel, as there is pent up demand for people who want to get out of the house after being cooped up for weeks on end. We’re seeing that a lot of this demand is coming from the local and regional area.”

The Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) says in May, the number of passengers being screened at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is down more than 90 percent compared to the same period a year ago.

There were 501 daily departures in May 2019 compared to just 124 in May 2020.

Jim & Judy Betty of Wayzata

Judy and Jim Betty of Wayzata booked a cruise for mid-September along the Danube River in Europe.

“During early March, British Airways cancelled our flight and rebooked us on a much less direct route,” said Jim Betty. “At that point, I contacted them and they were most happy to refund the cost of the flight.”

Betty said uncertain conditions regarding international travel at this time was a factor in deciding to cancel the trip.

“Will the cruise even operate? Will we be quarantined upon arrival and what actual flights will be offered by fall?,” said Jim Betty.

Fortunately, the Bettys have someone in their corner to help with cancelling the trip.

“We have worked with the same travel agent for at least 20 years, she is our advocate in all those issues, and any refunds that the trip operators offer will be returned to us,” said Jim Betty. “It is a good decision to use a competent travel agent.”

, ,
%d bloggers like this: