Long-haul destinations are seeing a big increase in bookings due to recent terrorist activity in traditional hotspots, Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia, according to British Travel Counselors.
Spain, US and Greece are still the top three destinations for summer holidays, it said, but Italy, Portugal and Cyprus have overtaken Turkey, following a 57% drop in bookings, and bookings for more far flung destinations are on the rise.
It said bookings to Thailand were up 27% over last year, whilst Canada and Barbados are up by 45% and 24% respectively. Indonesia and Sri Lanka have seen uplifts of 63% and 101%, respectively.
“These figures are a clear indicator of the shift towards long-haul ‘experience’ holidays, which looks set to continue for the foreseeable future,” says Simon Jeffries, head of product at Travel Counselors.
How is it in Scandinavia?
“Nyhavn Rejser is the leading Tour operator in the Danish Market for discerning FITS looking for unique experiences and tailor made up market travel solutions,” says Niels Johansen, Director, Production ,” Nyhavn Rejser, Denmark.
“The destinations we see growth in are the both classic sun and beach destinations as Thailand, Malaysia, Maldives, Mexico and Mauritius, but as well the destinations delivering once in a lifetime experiences as Canada, Africa, Vietnam, Borneo and Australia.
In Europe we see a move away from Greece towards Spain and Italy as consequence of the immigrant challenges Europe is facing.“
Peter Rasmussen, CEO, Profil Rejser, Denmark:
“We are seeing a large increase in the Exotic Islands (Maldives, Mauritius and Seychelles) where we have more than doubled sales the first few months of the year compared with last year.
In Greenland / Iceland we also experience great interest, and has grown significantly faster than the market in general.
In Africa / Middle East – especially South Africa – we have great success this year compared to last year with an index 140.
We don’t do Europe so much – only golf, sport, cruise, and group travel for businesses and schools. But mainly due to Cruise we do nicely on Europe, with growth this year of 17%. Leaders are Croatia, Spain and Portugal.
In turn, Asia and North America seem to stagnate a little and we are on index 100 on the East, and slightly below index 100 in North America.
Exception is Vietnam and the Danish West Indies Islands, where we still have growth,” says Peter Rasmussen.
Sweden and Norway up
“It’s a real rush for trips in the summer. Many have last year’s cold summer in memory and have therefore booked the trip early in the summer to get a few weeks of guaranteed sunshine and warmth,” says Karin Starkman Ahlstedt, PR and communications manager, Ticket Privatresor, Sweden and Norway.
“We see an increase in travel from both Norway and Sweden. This summer, bookings increased by 6 per cent in Norway and 14 percent in Sweden.
Travel to countries around Mediterranean is increasing strongly, both to Spain, Greece, Croatia and Italy. Even Portugal is growing strongly this summer. This is due to an unusually large demand because of last year’s cool summer and a decline to Turkey.
This decline in Turkey is due both to concerns about the situation in the country and that it is natural with a rebound following the sharp rise we have seen in recent years. Turkey however still remains among the top ten of the most booked countries this summer.
Egypt, which is a classic winter destination, dropped sharply last winter. From being among the top three of the favorite countries in the winter, Egypt has fallen far outside the top-ten list. In Sweden it was the fifteenth most booked country last winter.
Similarly, Tunisia has dropped and interest to go there is low. This is because there have been repeated acts of terrorism and threats directed against tourists, which means that many are afraid to go there.
Instead, countries such as Thailand have increased sharply. The country has made a great comeback. Travel to Dubai and Cuba are also growing strongly.
