Travel giant TUI has reported an upturn in previously struggling bookings over the last month as holidaymakers persist in making last-minute travel arrangements. The German-owned tour operator experienced continued pressure on market and airline bookings, with a 7% decline for the UK throughout the summer and a 2% reduction in Germany.
The winter forecast appears more modest, with bookings for the season decreasing by 9% and 4% in the UK and Germany – its two largest markets – respectively. However, TUI stated that bookings had strengthened over the previous four weeks, climbing by 2% for summer getaways while winter declines narrowed to just 1%.
Early indications
The company said: “With demand still largely focused on the summer season, early indications for the new winter season point to a continuation of the later booking environment against the backdrop of ongoing geopolitical and economic uncertainty. In this environment, we continue to carefully manage capacity, retaining the flexibility to adjust capacity in line with customer demand.”
It added: “Average selling prices continue to hold up well, reflecting the strength of our product proposition.”
TUI refined its full-year operating profit projection following the peak season recovery, to between 1.2 billion euros (£1.02 billion) and 1.3 billion euros (£1.11 billion), compared with the earlier guidance of 1.1 billion euros (£940 million) to 1.4 billion (£1.2 billion). The firm indicated that cost-reduction measures and maintaining firm pricing were assisting in counterbalancing the effect of escalating fuel expenses triggered by the Iran conflict.
Summer bookings revealed strong interest in short and medium-haul locations, particularly Greece and Spain, encompassing the Balearic and Canary Islands.
For the winter season, the Canaries, Spain, Egypt and Cape Verde are anticipated to be favoured choices, while long-haul travel is expected to concentrate on Thailand, Mexico and the Dominican Republic.
This story originally appeared on Express.co.uk
