Travel Counsellors, the UK’s leading, independent travel company witnessed another record week, taking as many bookings last week (commencing 17 January) as it did for the whole of January 2021.
With sales now back to at nearly 90 percent of 2019 levels, Travel Counsellors can report the highest new leisure booking week since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic as UK government scraps all testing requirements for the fully vaccinated.
It is not just the volume of bookings that is increasing but also the value, with several high-value single travel bookings to the Indian Ocean, Caribbean and South Africa being made for travel this year and as customers choose to spend more to treat themselves to that long awaited holiday.
Desperate to get away, holidaymakers are looking to travel imminently with over 25 per cent of bookings being for travel in February and March. The next most popular period is July, accounting for nearly 10 percent of all bookings. The most popular destinations for immediate travel are:
· Spain
· UAE
· USA
For travel in July, the most popular destinations are:
· Greece
· Spain
· USA
Jim Eastwood, Global Sales Director at Travel Counsellors, said: “People are booking now to travel before the end of February, and securing their preferences for summer trips, whilst also planning ahead for winter sun. The pent-up demand is increasing the volume and value of bookings and we anticipate this trend to continue, following the recent government announcement to scrap all testing on entering the UK for fully vaccinated travellers. Leisure customers and corporate clients require a level of care and support that our Travel Counsellors are renowned for, to help them navigate the changed travel landscape.”
Almost 90 percent of UK Travel Counsellors are making bookings in January, and Ireland is currently the most active market all Irish Travel Counsellors making new bookings in January. It’s not just leisure travellers that are booking, corporate bookings are now running at 70-80 percent of 2019 levels, with the majority of bookings being for immediate travel in January and February. The UK and USA are the top selling corporate travel destinations.
