Agents bullish despite slow sales


Travel Weekly reporters


Agents report enquiries and bookings coming in despite a third lockdown and expect “the market will turn” as millions more people are vaccinated. Graeme Brett, director of Westoe


Travel in South Shields, said: “It’s bad timing for peaks, but we’re getting clients booking for May onwards and for 2022. We had three bookings for next Christmas.” Stephanie Jepson, partner at


Courtney World Travel in Tewkesbury, said customers were postponing rather than cancelling, with bookings mainly for July, August, September and for Christmas 2021. She said: “We’ve a grim few weeks coming up,


but I’m positive. Once the vaccine is rolled out, the market will turn.” Andrew Meech, partner at


Liphook Travel in Hampshire, reported “an upturn in enquiries”, but said “conversion has been slow”. Flight Centre Travel Group


general manager Lucy Clifton said December had been the agency’s “most successful month since March”, with staff brought back from furlough as a result. “We anticipate a strong start to 2021, albeit not at traditional levels,” she said. Advantage Travel Partnership


leisure director Kelly Cookes said booking volumes were “not as in a normal year” but reported “clear demand” for later in 2021 with 20% of members’ bookings for June-August, 49% for September-


We’ve a grim few


weeks coming up, but I’m positive. Once the vaccine is rolled out, the market will turn


December and 20% for January 2022 onwards. Only 11% of bookings are for departures between now and May. Tui UK commercial director


Richard Sofer described January as “crucial” when addressing a Travel Weekly Insight Report webcast launch event in December. He said: “Many customers are in


a routine and want to book holidays at the start of the year. So the vaccine news came at a great time, but


customers want flexibility. We expect a peak-booking window. It remains to be seen what level that is, but I’m expecting a lot of demand.” Barrhead Travel president


Jacqueline Dobson said it was “difficult to judge” the market since Boxing Day but reported a rise in enquiries for late 2021 for destinations such as New York and Orlando and said current pricing was “brilliant”. Speaking on the webcast, she


said: “We’ll get a peaks, but maybe in March-April and a late market for summer.” Dobson said Barrhead had prepared for “a variety of scenarios”, adding: “We need to be flexible in resources and marketing . . . to pull


back or to add if demand is there.” i Abta campaign, page 7 i Comment, page 18


Consumer survey shows strength of holiday demand


Ian Taylor


Exclusive consumer research for Travel Weekly has confirmed the underlying strength of travel demand, with almost one in three UK adults (31%) intending to take an overseas holiday this year. The research in November found


16% ‘very likely’ to book a holiday abroad, suggesting 8.5 million are eager to go. Adults aged 25-44 appear most likely to book, with 45% of parents with children intending to travel. But confidence in the availability


4 7 JANUARY 2021


of a full refund, cited by 53% of prospective travellers, appears critical alongside flexible booking (47%). A majority (72%) said they will


book through intermediaries and one in five (20%) intend to use a high street agent, seven percentage points up on a year ago. Two in four (38%) expect to spend more on holidays in 2021 and half about the same as last time. More than one in two (53%)


expressed concern about Covid-19 in destinations, with levels of concern rising from 39% among 16-24-year- olds to 68% among over-65s.


LIKELIHOOD OF OVERSEAS HOLIDAY IN 2021


ALL-INCLUSIVE OVERSEAS IN 2021


LIKELIHOOD OF BOOKING


Source: Service Science/Kantar


Having to self-isolate while


away concerned more prospective travellers (51%) than having to quarantine on return (44%), while two out of five (43%) expressed concern about flying. There was no significant change


in the type of holidays consumers intend to take. All-inclusive demand remains extraordinarily strong – the choice of 52% of UK adults and 65% of parents with children under 16. Two in five holidaymakers (42%)


plan a beach holiday and one in five (19%) a city break, on a par with a


year earlier. The research also found no significant change in intended duration, and no greater intention to book self-catering (13%). Almost half (45%) of UK


adults said they would take at least one domestic holiday – down 22 percentage points year on year, identical to the drop in the proportion intending to travel overseas. The research was conducted


among 1,279 adults in early November for the Travel Weekly


Insight Report 2020-21. i More Insight reports, pages 12, 46-48


travelweekly.co.uk


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