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Travel companies have been adapting to changing demand


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EW analysis from ABTA – The Travel Association examines people’s travel habits over the last four decades and fi nds that while UK travellers remain


fi rmly committed to package holidays – the type of trip, destination and how they holiday has changed signifi cantly.


Package holidays continue to dominate the overseas UK holiday market, despite the emergence of other types of travel, with half of the holidays people take each year being package breaks – a fi gure that has held steady since 2014. However, the fi rst package holidays of the past are a far cry from some of the package breaks people are taking today.


Travel companies have responded to holidaymakers’ changing preferences – off ering packages that include tailor made trips, tours that take people off the beaten track, adventure holidays, well-being breaks and all-inclusives. Holidaymakers also have the chance to personalise their package – upgrading transfers, choosing their own room and even booking a specifi c sun lounger.


Interviews with ABTA Members reveal customers now often want to be the fi rst to visit a destination or particular resort, whereas back in the 1970s many people chose a holiday location based on where their friends or family had been.


Similarly, a package holiday was often sold with the promise of a ‘home-from-home’ – the UK but with better weather – but many UK holidaymakers are now keen to experience the best of the local culture. Travel experts also highlight that – as people have become more seasoned travellers and the UK restaurant scene off ers a wider range of cuisines – trends of the past such as packing tea bags, cereal, cleaning products and tinned food for their holiday abroad, as well as confusing prosciutto for raw bacon, have become a lot less common! Today’s holidaymaker is more likely to have a suitcase full of tech than tins, as travellers head off on their holidays equipped with cameras, tablets and high-end headphones. Changing destinations


ABTA’s new analysis of the latest International Passenger Survey (IPS) air travel fi gures made by holidaymakers also shows the diversifi cation of destinations people are visiting. While there is still a strong market for traditional package holiday destinations – almost 25 million visits were made to Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus and Malta combined last year, a big increase from just over 13 million in 1994 – today’s holidaymakers are branching out and going further afi eld.


UK holidaymaker visits to Mexico in 1994 stood at 18,778 whereas in 2018 visits were up by 3500 per cent to 676,734, that’s more than the number of visits to Malta (559,677).


Increased capacity in the airline industry and more


fuel-effi cient aircraft have put long-haul trips within reach of more UK travellers.


Closer to home, destinations that have seen an increase in popularity include Bulgaria and Croatia. Trips to Bulgaria have doubled since 1994 and it looks set to continue to increase its share of visitors – with bookings for summer 2019 up 16 per cent on last year. Many ABTA experts list the Balearics, Italian Riviera, Belgium (specifi cally Blankenberge), Austria, Switzerland and Germany as their most booked


destinations when package holidays fi rst became popular.


Mark Tanzer, Chief Executive of ABTA – The Travel Association said: “The UK continues to be a nation in love with the foreign holiday as tens of millions of people head abroad each year, with package holidays still dominating a large proportion of the travel market. But how we’re holidaying now is quite diff erent compared to the package breaks of the 1970s. “Holidaymakers’ tastes are continually evolving, and the travel industry is adapting to the changing demands of customers; whether you want a two week trip around the Caribbean, a cultural city break to Cadiz, a tailor- made trip to Mexico or seven days in the Costa del Sol, all of these options can be provided via a package holiday.


“With the introduction of the new Package Travel Regulations last year, more travel arrangements this summer are likely to be package holidays – off ering customers the best form of protection.


“If you haven’t arranged your summer holiday this year, now is a good time to explore your options and book – whether that’s visiting a popular destination or somewhere new – holidaymakers will fi nd that there are still good value breaks available this summer.” Holidaymakers who have booked with an ABTA Member will have access to the support, protection and expertise provided by ABTA so people can travel with confi dence. You can fi nd an ABTA Member by visiting abta.com/fi ndamember.


Examples from ABTA Members of customers over the years on their package holidays ·


While staying in a high-end hotel in Italy one guest mistook prosciutto for raw bacon at the buff et and called their travel agent to complain. · A customer who arrived for a holiday to Spain called their travel rep on the emergency number in the middle of the night to complain that their hotel had too many Spanish people, and later in the holiday complained the restaurants were also ‘too Spanish’. ·


The fi rst package holidays are a far cry from what we have today, fi nds ABTA in a major new survey of changing holiday trends (see story left)


New link to Dallas Fort Worth


One family brought an entire suitcase fi lled with food on their self-catering trip, only to be upgraded to half board, however they still insisted on fl ying back with all of their food. ·


Holidaymakers were also relaxed about sun protection, with many using olive oil to ensure they returned with a good tan.


One agent recalls when hotels used to provide curtain rails in rooms for young couples, to protect their modesty (and to adhere to their parents’ wishes). ·


ABTA spokespeople, ABTA Members and customer case studies are available on request


4,6 ABTA analysed the International Passenger Survey (IPS) air travel fi gures for the purpose of a holiday (excluding visits for Business, Visiting friends or relatives or Miscellaneous) from the ONS from 1994 (the fi rst set of full online data available) to 2018 (the most recent set of fi gures), with three-year intervals, focusing on 16 of the most popular destinations for UK holidaymakers. Visitor numbers are survey estimates and are subject to sampling errors.


The tables below show the number of visits for a holiday made to each destination by air travel in 1994 and 2018. It is worth noting that there are fl uctuations of visitor numbers in years between, often in response to external events.


DUBLIN Airport has welcomed American Airlines’ new daily direct service to Dallas Fort Worth. The new route will be operated with a Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner and will be Ireland’s fi rst direct fl ight to Dallas, which is American’s largest hub for connecting traffi c. “Dallas is an excellent addition to the existing route network from Dublin Airport and we are thrilled that American Airlines will be serving this market with a daily summer service,” said Dublin Airport Managing Director Vincent Harrison.


“This new route will further grow the already strong links between Ireland and the United States and will boost tourism and trade between the two countries,” Mr Harrison added.


“This is the fi rst time Ireland and Texas have been connected with a direct fl ight and the new service will help meet the increased demand for travel between both markets. We will be working closely with American Airlines in order to promote this new service on both sides of the Atlantic.”


Dublin Airport has direct services to 18 destination in the US this year as part of its largest ever transatlantic off ering


From Dallas, Irish travellers can connect onto top onward destinations including Hawaii, Las Vegas, Cancun, Los Angeles and New Orleans” said Vasu Raja, American Airline’s Vice President of Network and Schedule Planning. “We’re really excited to provide Irish travellers with direct access


QATAR Airways are celebrating fi ve years fl ying from Edinburgh with 10 fl ights per week this coming summer.


The airline will be operating three additional fl ights weekly during the summer, from July until the end of October. There will be double daily fl ights on Monday, Wednesday and Friday.


Travellers are advised to check out the airline’s midweek availability for especially competitive fares. Qatar Airways’ growth from Edinburgh has doubled over the last fi ve years. It’s the fi rst time a long haul carrier has operated double daily routes to the Middle


to the largest hub of American, the world’s largest airline” he added. Dallas Fort Worth Airport welcomed 67 million passengers last year, making it the twelfth largest airport in the world. American Airlines operates more than 800 fl ights per day from Dallas to destinations across the United States, the Caribbean, Mexico, Canada and South America. The new route will operate daily from today until September 28, 2019, departing Dallas at 20.35 and arriving in Dublin at 11.40 the following day. The return fl ight will depart Dublin at 13.40, arriving in Dallas at 17.45. So far this year, over 18 million passengers have travelled through Dublin Airport, which is a six per cent increase over the same period last year.


Ten Qatar fl ights weekly from Edinburgh


East from Edinburgh Airport, demonstrating the award-winning airline’s confi dence in the busy route. Flights are operated by the acclaimed A350. Great fares are off ered to countries like Vietnam, Japan, Hong Kong, Myanmar, Africa and South Africa, Nepal, Bali, New Zealand, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Singapore, Indian Ocean destinations, Malaysia, Australia and of course to Doha, the capital city of the state of Qatar.


Meanwhile, Qatar’s service from London Gatwick is going triple daily, just two years after its initial launch. Stopovers in Doha are off ered from just 23 USD a night.


Make Spanish holiday plans whatever Brexit uncertainty


WHILE political uncertainty over Brexit continues, life must go on for Brits, and that includes making holiday plans.


The Spanish Tourist Boad is encouraging travellers to go ahead with their holiday plans


In light of this, the Spanish Tourist Offi ce (Turespaña) has launched a new campaign entitled ‘You have Spain in Common’, encouraging UK travellers to put their diff erences aside and ‘enjoy Spain in the same way’. The campaign which includes a microsite, and a range of short videos adapted for each social media channel, showcases what Brits have in common and aims to remind UK holidaymakers that Spain is open for business despite concerns holidaymakers may have over Brexit. The fi rst video features a group of friends enjoying a day at the beach. As


the footage rolls, the text states “this is how remainers spend a day at the beach” shortly followed by a similar scene with the text “this is how leavers spend a day at the beach”. The video ends with hashtag #spainincommon. In 2018, Spain welcomed 18.5 million visitors from the UK but wants to reassure customers that Spain continues to off er high quality sustainable travel options to British travellers.


Five videos will run across You Tube, Facebook and Twitter, targeting families and groups across the UK. As an additional part of the campaign, a microsite has launched featuring all the campaign videos as well as FAQ’s for travellers to Spain. In line with advice issued by


ABTA, the Brexit extension to October 31,2019 has provided absolute certainty that all current arrangements for travel will remain as they are today.


Isabel Oliver, the president of the Turespaña says: “The aim of this campaign is to reassure customers that Spain is open for business and to help customers with any misinformation around how to travel to Spain in the run up to Brexit. The campaign follows the 2017 ‘Spain in my Heart’ campaign which attracted over six million users and last year’s ‘Spain in 10 Seconds’ campaign where Spanish celebrities from Rafa Nadal to Placido Domingo shared their favourite corner of Spain.


July/August 2019 Travel News Changing face of package holidays


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