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How travel disruption affects hospitality and how to protect your bookings

For hospitality operators there are lots of factors outside the realms of their control that can have a huge impact on bookings and revenue. Travel disruption continues to be one of those challenges, especially in major cities. Our own Access Hospitality booking data captured during the 2025 London tube strikes showed that restaurant and bar reservations in the capital fell by up to 67 percent on strike affected days.  

 

These patterns are not limited to tube strikes. Heavy snow and storms caused major booking fluctuations across the UK, as reported by The Caterer. Rail disruption, road closures and severe weather continue to influence consumer behaviour, which creates unpredictable trading conditions for operators. 

 

Sudden changes in covers makes it harder to manage labour costs, stock levels and team planning with no shows more likely and walk ins declining. In this article, we explore the types of disruption that affect hospitality demand and the practical ways operators can protect profitability. 

HOS Jen Grenside writer on Hospitality

by Jen Grenside

Senior Content Manager for Hospitality

Posted 20/02/2026

How travel disruption affects hospitality and how to protect your bookings

Why travel disruption affects hospitality demand

Major travel disruptions can have a significant impact on customer confidence and behaviour, when the journey to a venue becomes uncertain, people often adjust plans, stay closer to home or cancel reservations entirely. This severely reduces the number of walk ins and last-minute bookings that many urban restaurants and bars rely on.  

For operators, the consequences include sudden drops in covers, uneven demand across the week, increased no shows and inefficiencies in labour and stock planning. Weather related disruption can also affect deliveries and supply chains, which puts additional pressure on kitchen teams.  

What types of travel disruption affect hospitality bookings

There are a few different disruption scenarios that can influence customer behaviour in different ways and require different operational responses.  

Here are a few of the most common ways that traffic disruption can impact hospitality businesses:  

Tube strikes and their impact on covers and no shows

Tube strikes often produce the sharpest and most immediate booking declines. During the September 2025 tube strikes, we saw bookings fall by up to 67% in London. This level of volatility makes it difficult to plan staffing needs during periods of planned strike action. “Our booking data makes it clear just how much transport issues affect how people socialise," says Leighanne Bent, Marketing Manager at Access Hospitality.  

"When the network slows, confidence drops, and that affects walk-in trade and last-minute bookings long before the strike day itself. Operators feel that shift quickly, and it can be difficult to recover those covers without strong communication and flexible booking options.” 

Rail disruption and reduced regional footfall

Hotels, destination pubs and restaurants often see cancellations when regional or national rail strikes take place. Leisure guests may rethink travel plans and corporate guests may move meetings online, which reduces demand for F&B. 

Weather disruption and seasonal unpredictability

Snow, storms and flooding can make travel difficult, reduce confidence in leaving home and disrupt supply chains. Customers may wait until the last minute to decide whether to travel, which increases booking volatility. 

Road closures and major events

Marathons, parades, roadworks and seasonal markets can affect local access and extend travel times. Even when demand remains strong, operators may see unexpected peaks or quieter periods due to access issues. 

3 ways to reduce no shows during travel disruption

While you can't control when disruption strikes, you can control how your business responds. Here's how to minimise the impact: 

1. Send targeted reminders when disruption is announced

As soon as travel disruption is confirmed, send proactive messages asking guests to confirm or reschedule their booking. SMS and email reminders with one-click confirmation links reduce silent cancellations and give you time to adjust operations. 

2. Introduce flexible booking options when travel is disrupted 

Allow guests to move their booking to another day or time slot without penalty during disruption periods. Protecting the relationship matters more than protecting the original booking date, and you're more likely to keep the revenue. 

3. Use historical data to spot patterns and plan ahead 

Access Evo insights show you how previous disruptions affected your bookings, helping you adjust staffing, prep lists and messaging strategies based on realistic demand expectations rather than guesswork. 

How travel disruption affects hospitality and how to protect your bookings

How operators can protect profitability during unpredictable conditions

Advance preparation is key when it comes to managing unexpected impact to revenue. Robust processes make sure everyone knows what to do, rather than making rash decisions in the moment, or worse, when it’s too late.  

Here are a few ways you can be proactive when it comes to minimising risk to your business:  

Adjust your staffing schedules based on real time booking data 

Using Access EPoS and Access Evo insights helps operators right size staffing levels quickly, reducing the risk of overstaffing on unexpectedly quiet days. 

Manage your stock and prep levels to reduce waste 

By adapting orders and prep lists early, operators can reduce waste without compromising quality. Tools like Procure Wizard allow kitchen teams to set accurate par levels and track usage. 

Use guest engagement tools to encourage rebooking 

Our customer engagement solution allows operators to send targeted messages to guests who have cancelled due to disruption. Even small increases in rebooked covers can help keep weekly revenue more stable. 

How to build a long-term response plan for disruption 

Help your teams act quickly and confidently by creating a repeatable approach they can turn to when disruption hits. 

Create a clear disruption response plan 

Define FOH and BOH responsibilities so teams react calmly rather than scrambling. Include templates for guest messaging, staff briefings and supplier communication to reduce stress during busy periods. 

Train teams on cancellation conversations 

Give front-of-house staff clear scripts and guidance for handling cancellations and rebooking requests. Consistent messaging protects the guest experience and increases the likelihood of recovering bookings. 

Use data to forecast disruption patterns 

Access Evo analytics show how different types of disruption have affected your trading in the past. While the tool can't predict future events, it helps you prepare for similar conditions more effectively. 

Ready to protect your revenue during travel disruptions? 

Unexpected travel and weather disruptions will always have the power to affect hospitality businesses, but operators who plan ahead can protect bookings, reduce waste and maintain better control of labour costs. With the right communication processes, flexible booking options and strong use of data, teams can react quickly and reduce the commercial impact. 

 

And while we can’t help you predict the next disruption, Access Hospitality can support operators with the tools to help your team manage bookings more effectively and adjust staffing schedules based on real data. 

 

Find out how Access Hospitality can help protect bookings during disruption. 

HOS Jen Grenside writer on Hospitality

By Jen Grenside

Senior Content Manager for Hospitality

Jen brings 10 years of writing experience across tech, finance and hospitality to the Access Hospitality team. Diving into hospitality data and surfacing emerging trends, Jen provides the industry insights that help hospitality professionals make better decisions. And with more than 5 years of experience working in frontline hospitality, she also creates content to help frontline teams use software to serve better guest experiences.