The COVID-19 pandemic has hit the travel and tourism industries hard, but some local officials are optimistic about the future.

At the height of the pandemic, the number of travelers at Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Airport fell by nearly 95% from a record year 2019, said airport executive director Carl Beardsley. Now the trip is down 63%, he said.

“Fortunately, we have seen a gradual increase in the number of travelers from month to month and are optimistic that this trend will continue as more people are vaccinated and our economy begins to stabilize,” said Beardsley.

According to Beardsley, COVID-19 has had a positive and negative impact on the airport.

From a positive perspective, he said it enabled the airport team to step up efforts on non-contact technology, improve cleaning strategies and improve efficiency, which enables passengers to check-in and board their flights with reduced waiting times.

“We also used this time to better connect with our regular customers, to determine their destination interests, and started planning additional routes for business and leisure travelers,” he said.

In an effort to attract more people willing to travel once the pandemic has subsided, airport officials have stepped up the community’s marketing efforts to focus more on vacation destinations until business travel reopens.

Airport officials have also partnered with local business executives to better understand their return to “normal” schedules, he said.

“We have also expanded our public relations work to geographic areas that are underserved by air travel standards in hopes of attracting new travelers,” he said.

Now Beardsley said he was “more optimistic than ever” that Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Airport will be “stronger than it was before the pandemic”.

“I think our airport is well positioned to overcome all of this, given our great facility, our great location and our great team,” he said. In addition to airport flights, the pandemic has also affected other modes of transport, from buses to taxis to ridesharing such as Uber and Lyft.

Uber and Lyft stocks have rebounded from last year’s lows, with Uber up more than 60% and Lyft up 50% over the last year.

In early March, Lyft announced it was having its best week for travel since the pandemic lockdown began, at which point the company said it would expect positive year-over-year growth in the second half of March.

While COVID-19 created a lot of transportation problems for people, Lyft officials helped get ridesharing to help frontline workers at work and people with grocery shopping.

Sam Young, Lyft’s regional director, said the company’s employees are committed to ensuring that Lyft is available to those who need it and that all drivers are safe and comfortable on the road.

“As we continue to navigate COVID-19 and the introduction of vaccines in Pennsylvania, it is clear that Lyft is helping connect people with essential needs and services, as well as vaccination sites,” said Young.

Like Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Airport, Lucerne County’s tourism reached a record year in 2019, setting a milestone by seeing a $ 1 billion economic impact from visitors to the area, according to Visit Luzerne County and the Pennsylvania Tourism Office.

The pandemic has taken a heavy toll and Visit Luzerne County is working to rebuild the local tourism industry.

Ted Wampole, executive director of Visit Luzerne County, said a report from the Pennsylvania Tourism Office showed that 2019 was a booming year for Luzerne County before the COVID-19 pandemic hit the tourism industry and tourism-supporting businesses a heavy blow displaced. The report also showed that tourism supported more than 7,250 jobs in Lucerne County in 2019.

“These 2019 numbers show the importance of rebuilding the industry and our businesses,” said Wampole. “A billion dollars makes a difference to our region and the people who depend on those jobs, which is why we at Visit Luzerne County have worked non-stop behind the scenes to ensure that Luzerne County is at the forefront when people are ready to return to travel.” of their thoughts. “

Wampole said the airport is one of the region’s assets and the county is just a short drive from major metro areas with easy interstate access.

Another positive that could help Lucerne County get back to the $ 1 billion mark is that various studies of traveler sentiment show that many looking to travel in the coming months are looking for small-town destinations that offer outdoor recreational opportunities such as the region offers.

“The opportunities for outdoor recreation in Lucerne County are endless, with four state parks, miles of hiking trails, and numerous waterways,” said Wampole. “We’re also home to great entertainment, restaurants, breweries, wineries, and other unique businesses. With all of this, it’s easy to see why Luzerne County continues to be a top choice for everything from family reunions to weekend getaways, sporting events and conventions.”

Visit Luzerne County is the official destination marketing organization in the area and is funded by the 1% hotel tax that visitors pay when they stay in the area.

Curt Camoni, executive director of the Lackawanna County Convention and Visitors Bureau, said the COVID-19 pandemic had also had a devastating impact on tourism in Lackawanna County after three record years of steady growth in 2017, 2018 and 2019.

The Lackawanna County Tourism Promotion Agency is funded by hotel tax, and Camoni said the number of people renting hotel rooms fell by 40% over the past year.

COVID-19 has wiped out the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders games, concerts and festivals, but like Luzerne County, Camoni has seen a surge in travelers interested in socially distant outdoor activities and adventure tourism in Lackawanna County.

The Lackawanna County River was voted Pennsylvania River of the Year in 2020, and Camoni has seen more visitors on the Heritage Trail and in the parks. People have booked campsites at record levels, and Montage Mountain Resort’s water park did well in the summer and the ski area was a popular destination in the winter, he said.

Camoni has also seen restaurants reinvent themselves in Lackawanna County and transform into restaurants with alfresco entertainment. In the future he said, “You will probably be stronger for it.”

He is also optimistic about the future of tourism in Lackawanna County, assuming that outdoor activities will remain strong and concerts and other major events will be “bigger and better than ever”.

Carl Beardsley, general manager of Wilkes-Barre / Scranton Airport, said these are three important lessons he learned in his job amid the pandemic:

Don’t take anything as guaranteed. Even with high numbers, always think of new strategies with which you can better serve existing and new customers.

Stay in touch with other airports across the state and across the country and share best practices.

Stay in touch with elected officials so they understand how important the airport is to our community and what it means to our economic vitality.