When the Golden Gate of
San Francisco Reopens to the World
However, in a world that has changed, we
too are changed, and while we are excited to once again explore the world, we
move more cautiously. We will check the
boarding and cleaning process of airlines.
The refund or credit policies of hotels and cruise companies. Also, we will remember who treated us well
during the crisis and put passengers over profits.
The starting point of this decision process, however, will be based on where we
stick the pin in the map. Where will we
go?
San Francisco, California would
be my choice if I were not fortunate to already live here. I have been contacted by people around the
world who are praising how our Mayor has handled the crisis, making them want
to visit San Francisco as soon as the lockdown is over.
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| San Francisco Mayor London Breed |
San Francisco Mayor London Breed
deserves all the accolades she is receiving.
She stepped up early – the first US City to do so, followed by New York
City. She was the first US Mayor to call
for a “State of Emergency” and set up an Emergency response command center in the
Moscone Convention Center.
Mayor Breed has proven to be a
leader who can pull people together in a deadly crisis. Her quick response likely saved hundreds if
not thousands of lives. This is the
leadership in action that will boost travel back to San Francisco.
With this possibility San
Francisco has hope for the future of tourism to the City by the Bay. The challenge will be for our hotels,
restaurants, and airports to step up and provide the same level of comfort for
visitors as the Mayor’s leadership has done.
We will choose our hotels based on the new technology for cleaning
rooms, and how well they cleaned during the lockdown. Some will lose a loyal customer base because
of policies at the onset of the crisis that refused to give refunds. Guests will want to see more space in the
lobby and restaurant, ongoing adherence to social distancing. Likely more room service and fewer
restaurants.
What will matter beyond cleaning
and safety procedures, will be how these businesses stepped up during the
crisis. Did they give rooms to First
Responders – doctors, nurses, police.
Did they set up quarantines for people who could not go home? Did they shelter the homeless – a difficult
moral/marketing dilemma for sure. Did
the restaurants donate food to senior homes, feed people on the front line of
this pandemic, or did they raise prices to take advantage of the moment? Did they donate money, equipment, time?
When this Pandemic is under
control, people will want to know who put people first. San Francisco Mayor London Breed put the
people of San Francisco first. When the
Golden Gate opens you should come to visit and see how well a great leader kept
our vibrant City healthy and hope-filled.
Learn
more about travel to San Francisco at http://www.visit-sf.com/
