EMEA 2017 Market Update Q4

EMEA–2017 Market Update– Q4

Leisure Travel

Central Europe

The German economy for 2018 is still positive with a growth of 1.8% which will be strengthened through a still low unemployment rate of currently 5,3%, a very positive consumer power (growth in 2017 +2,8%) and a stable export industry

The US President announcements against import taxes and restrictions for certain countries can influence the travel behavior to the US for business slightly, but especially for leisure travels

BREXIT will positively affect the leisure booking to UK by a lower GBP

Due to a still very positive economy the consumer behavior is very positive and it will be invested a lot on the business but even private sector, which effect the travel industry a lot

The terroristic attacks in Europe influenced the travel behavior of German Travelers:

Biggest Loss for 2017: Turkey (Istanbul, Antalya, Izmir, Bodrum)

Biggest Win for 2017: Spain (especially Mallorca), Italy, Greece, Canada

Comebackers 2017: Marocco

Highest Growth: Germany itself and neighbor countries (Austria, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Denmark)

TOP GERMAN TOUR OPERATOR (2017)

The loss of the bid 3 is resulted by the dramatic fall down of the Turkey bookings.

Top short-haul destinations: Germany, Spain, Italy, Austria, France, Croatia, Greece, Netherlands
Most popular cities are (outside of Germany): London (still!), Paris (still!), Amsterdam, Vienna, Barcelona, Prague
Top long-haul destinations:

North America (USA, Canada), Asia Far East, Latin America & Caribic, Asia-Mid East, Rest of Africa, Oceania, South America

Top Destinations 2017 outbound Central Europe

Most trendy & newcomer destinations 2017 outbound Central Europe:

Most trendy & newcomer cities 2017 outbound Central Europe:

Cities with the highest growth (outside of Germany): Amsterdam, Madrid, Rom, Lisbon, Dublin
Target Groups Trends (clients with income of EUR 250,000 p.a. and more)

-28% of the clients are requesting their leisure trips through agencies

-98% of the clients are looking for destinations with high activity levels

-50% of the clients would like to get a direct access top executive lounges and additionally high end complimentary services (extra benefits such as discount or credit for Spa or F&B)

-30% of the clients are looking for more typical regional styled hotels with regional atmosphere

-19% of the clients are looking for Grandhotels

Contact for this market all based in Munich, Germany
Stephan Brauer (Leisure | Corporate)

Eastern Europe

Outbound travel from Russia is heading towards a comeback. Outbound trips increased by 18 percent between January and August 2017.
Looking ahead, IPK International is forecasting a 4 percent rise in European outbound travel in 2018. Particularly strong growth is expected from the UK (+6 percent) despite the weaker pound and Russia (+6 percent) which would confirm this year’s comeback.

The number of abroad tourist trips in Russia grew by 54% for 9 months of 2017 and amounted 11.6 million”, - reported the Press secretary of the Russian Tourist Industry Union (RCT) Irina Turina with reference to data of the Border Guard Service of Russian Federation.
As the RCT spokeswoman said, Turkey made the significant breakthrough for 9 months of this year, rising from the tenth line to the first. With the purpose of tourism the Russians made about 3 million trips to the country for 9 months of 2017, which is 1025% more than in the same period in 2016. On the second line is Spain - it was visited by 657 thousand tourists, which is 16% more than in the same period of the last year. On the third place is China - the number of Russian tourists, who visited the country for 9 months of 2017, was 655 thousand people, that is - 43% more. On the fourth line is Greece - in January-September this year the number of Russians who visited the country grew by 6% and amounted 641 thousand people. Cyprus is on the fifth place with 560 thousand Russians (+ 3.5%). The highest growth was shown by Cuba (151%), Dominican Republic (100%), Georgia (74%) and Japan (67%). Only two directions from the TOP 10 showed a negative result after the returning of Turkey - Tunisia (minus 22%) and Bulgaria (minus 13%).
The total number of Russian tourists abroad increased by 12% for 9 months and amounted 32.7 million trips. Last year, during this period, there was a decrease of 11.5%.
The luxury agents are very demanding and treat the PH&R sales office as well as the representative of the Preferred hotels. The agents assume that they can call for assistance with hotels and VIP clients no matter which booking engine they used, directly with the hotel, via the VIP desk, or via the local DMC.

Contact for this market based in Moscow, Russia
Elvira Tarasenko

France

Air France just launched their new company named Joon. Joon is between a low cost company and a traditional company. They start with European destinations such as Barcelona, Porto, Berlin, Lisbonne and they will extend some long-haul flights from next Summer (Fortaleza, Brasil ; Capetown, South Africa…).

2017 figures/trends:

Bookings:

-Medium-Haul destinations: the number of bookings has increased by 12% vs. last year in terms of number of passengers and the revenue by 13%. The average spend remains stable (+1%)

-Long-Haul destinations: the number of bookings has increased by 9% vs last year in terms of number of passengers and the revenue by 6%. The average spend has decreased by 3%.

Top destinations:

-Medium-Haul destinations: Spain (-6% passengers), Greece (+3%), Italy (+0%), Portugal (+1%), Tunisia (+136%), Morocco (+18%).

-Long-Haul-destinations: US (3% passengers), Dominican Republic (-1%), Thailand (+13%), Mauritius (-4%), Canada (+16%), Cuba (+23%), China (+2%), Mexico (-1%), Vitenam (+10%), Indonesia (+39%).

Booking windows (bookings made more than 2 months in advance):

-Medium-Haul destinations: 51% for Spain, 59% for Greece, 55% for Italy, 57% for Portugal, 30% for Tunisia, 44% for Morocco

-Long-Haul destinations: 73% for the US, 57% for Dominican Republic, 67% for Thailand, 65% for Mauritius, 77% for Canada, 63% for Cuba, 47% for China, 61% for Mexico, 80% for Vietnam and 82% for Indonesia.

Length of stay:

-Medium-Haul destinations: most the bookings are made for stays between 5 and 12 nights in Spain (74% of the bookings), Greece (88%), Italy (52%; 42% of the stays are made for 1 to 4 nights), Portugal (65%; 29% of the stays are made for 1 to 4 nights), Tunisia (79%) and Morocco (69%). 83% of the bookings are made for short stays between 1 and 4 nights to the UK and 86% to Germany.

-Long-Haul destinations: bookings are mainly made for 5 to 12 nights in the US (57%), Dominican Republic (87%), Thailand (55%), Mauritius (79%), Canada (77%), Cuba (54%), Mexico (74%) and Indonesia (61%). 56% of the stays to China and Vietnam are made for more than 13 nights.

Contact for this market is based Paris, France

Stephane

Iberian Peninsula

Norwegian Air to increase + 70% number of seats between Barcelona and USA. Also new line Bilbao – Stockholm in May 2018.
Condor to connect 3 Spanish cities to Phoenix, Arizona 3 times a week.
Vueling and Iberia reinforcing flights to and from Bilbao to Europe in 2018.
Air Europa Opens Madrid – Marrakech.
Iberia to re open MADRID – San Juan, Puerto Rico direct.
Even though main European cities (London, Paris as Top) and some USA like New York, Miami still ahead on Spanishtravelers in 2017, these have been the top destinations for their December vacations:

1. Morroco (30%)

2. Thailand (20%)

3. México (Cancún and Riviera) (14%)

4. Indonesia (9%)

5. Filipinas (7%)

6. Cuba (6%)

7. Kenia (5%)

8. Singapur (4%)

9. Nicaragua (3%)

10. Seychelles (2%)

Contact for this market based in Barcelona
Eva

Italy

Italian economy is experiencing a very positive trend closing 2017 with + 1,5% vs 2016.
The employment status registers a positive trend with more than 23 million of Italians with a job (it didn’t happen since 2008 )
Foreign investments towards Italy have been growing, in 2015 they were 20 billion of Euro while in 2017 more than 29 billion
Italy is also one of the biggest players in exports, occupying the fifth position in the world after China, Germany, Japan and South Korea. The average increase of export is 3 %, but some sectors automotive and pharmaceutical registered + 8,55% and 31,8% each.
Very strong is the incoming tourism: in 2017 Italy has reached 53, 6 million of tourists (+4,6% vs 2016), the number of room nights has a positive sign as well (more than 160 million)

This positive growing has happened despite some international factors:

The uncertainty on the timing and procedure of Brexit
The Catalan events

Internally: the differences among the Italian regions remain deep with a North in constant growing respect a South that finds very difficult to grow

The forecast for the global economy is positive and the previsions says that Italy will have a growth of 2% for 2017

During winter, long haul leisure destinations have been: Caribbean Islands, Maldives, Thailand
Interest towards Japan as leisure destination is growing a lot due to the fact that it is considered a safe Country and also very well organized
Sas opened a flight twice per week from genoa to Copenhagen
Meridiana opened a daily flight from from Milan Malpensa to Moscow

Contact for this market is based out of Milan, Italy

Silvia Lavazza

Middle East

04 October 17 - Bahrain's Gulf Air signs codeshare deal with Turkish Airlines

Agreement will be applied to flights operated by both carriers to Manama and Istanbul from November 1. Gulf Air, Bahrain’s national carrier, and Turkish Airlines have signed a codeshare agreement that will be effective from November 1. The agreement will expand the travel opportunities for the passengers of both airlines with jointly operated double daily flights between Bahrain and Istanbul, a statement said. Gulf Air’s deputy CEO, Captain Waleed Abdul Hameed Al Alawi, and Turkish Airlines’ deputy chairman and CEO, Bilal Eksi, signed the agreement. The new codeshare agreement will be applied to the flights operated by both carriers to Manama and Istanbul, broadening the commercial partnership between the two companies and their respective countries, the statement said. Gulf Air and Turkish Airlines each operate one daily flight between Bahrain and Istanbul and, under the terms of this agreement, both carriers will place their codes on both airlines’ flights, operating between Bahrain and Istanbul. Al Alawi said: “Entering into a codeshare agreement with Turkish Airlines is a positive strategic step forward for Gulf Air, through which we offer our guests a larger combined frequency of flights while strengthening and enhancing our commercial ties. Gulf Air passengers can now connect to a range of destinations through this codeshare by both airlines, providing them with greater choice, convenience and a seamless travel experience.

20 Dec 17 - Emirates says to launch flights to seventh UK airport in 2018

Dubai airline to begin flights to London Stansted from June 8. Emirates on Wednesday announced that it is to launch a new daily route from Dubai to London Stansted on June 8, 2018. With its strategic position close to the tech and pharma hubs of Cambridge and Peterborough, Emirates said it will be the first Middle Eastern airline to operate out of the North East London airport. The daily route will be operated by the airline’s new three-class Boeing 777-300ER offering customers 6 seats in First Class, 42 in Business Class and 306 in Economy Class. More than 25 of the world’s largest corporations have established operations in the wider Cambridge and Peterborough area, with Airbus, Astra Zeneca and GSK among the multi-national companies based there. Such businesses have helped establish the London Stansted Cambridge Corridor as one of the top five global knowledge regions, alongside world-leading San Francisco, Silicon Valley and Boston. With the introduction of the London Stansted daily service, there will be 10 Emirates flights daily, connecting Dubai and London. Sir Tim Clark, president of Emirates said: "The introduction of the new London Stansted-Dubai service underscores our commitment to serve London, with operations soon to three different airports in the city. There is a clear demand for this service from both business and leisure travellers and we anticipate that this news will be warmly received both across our global network, as well as by the business community based in the Stansted catchment area. We look forward to facilitating even more tourism and commerce opportunities to and from London with these new air transport links, and to providing our customers with the award-winning Emirates experience. Stansted airport will also be vital for Emirates’ SkyCargo, the freight division of Emirates, due to its large cargo handling capabilities. The carrier connects cargo customers to over 154 cities across 84 countries in six continents and flies 140,000 tonnes of cargo in and out of the UK in an average year. The new gateway will be the seventh UK airport that Emirates operates out of in the UK - other locations include London Heathrow, London Gatwick, Birmingham, Newcastle, Manchester and Glasgow.

30 Dec 17 - Dubai's Rashid Port receives four cruise ships on single day.

The cruise quay at Dubai's Rashid Port received four cruise ships simultaneously on Friday - Aida Stilla, Main Chef 5, MSC Splendida and Coasta Mediterrania - the first time this has been achieved. The multiple arrivals confirm the port's readiness to meet the growing demand in the cruise tourism sector and the emirate’s plans to target a million cruise tourists by 2020, a statement said.A total of 21,411 tourists and 3,849 crew were on board the ships, it added. The emirate of Dubai received 157 cruise ships during the current season 2016-2017 which started last October and will continue until April. This represents a 18 percent increase compared to last season which received 133 cruise ships. The number of cruise tourists grew 15 percent to reach 650,000 in 2016-2017 season. Mohammed Al Mannaei, CEO P&O Marinas and executive director Mina Rashid, DP World said that receiving four big cruise ships on a single day indicates the port’s ability to cope up with the growth in cruise tourism in Dubai. The port can receive seven cruise ships simultaneously on a 1,900m quay and capacity of 18,000 tourists through terminals 2 and 3. Cruise Terminal 3 is the biggest of its type worldwide with a capacity of 14,000 passengers.

05 January 18 - Emirates flies over 59 million passengers in 2017. Dubai carrier registers more than 886 million km around the globe, equivalent to over 16,000 trips to Mars. Emirates has revealed that it has carried over 59 million passengers in 2017. The Dubai-based airline also said in a statement that it served over 63 million meals on its flights departing Dubai, and moved over 35 million pieces of baggage in Dubai to its network of 156 destinations. Emirates registered over 3,600 passenger flights on average per week, or over 191,000 flights in 2017, travelling more than 886 million kilometres around the globe, which is equivalent to over 16,000 trips to Mars. Reflecting on the year, Sir Tim Clark, president Emirates Airline said: “Despite the ups and downs of 2017, Emirates delivered steady growth and we have come out stronger and even more resilient. Throughout the year, we challenged convention and acted nimbly to mitigate challenges and maximise opportunities. We implemented initiatives to boost revenues, trim costs, and used emerging technologies to make our business and operations more agile, without compromising on quality or service. We enter 2018 with optimism, and an unflagging drive to keep raising the bar in terms of customer experience and business performance. Emirates grew its fleet by 21 new aircraft in 2017, with 9 A380 and 12 Boeing 777-300ER deliveries, rounding off the year with 269 aircraft, and 243 aircraft pending delivery. The carrier said it expanded its network to 156 destinations in 2017, with the addition of three new passenger destinations - Newark, US via Athens; Zagreb, Croatia; and Phnom Penh, Cambodia - while also expanding the number of cities served by its flagship A380 in 2017 aircraft to 48. Emirates said its SkyCargo unit continues to play an integral role in the airline’s expanding operations, and in 2017 carried 2.5 million tonnes of freight.

Contact for this market based in Middle East
Nabil Hassanieh

United Kingdom

Despite the challenging year in 2017 due to inflation outstripping wage growth and value of the pound being affected, 2017 has seen Brits still enjoying travelling and taking more holidays than at any time since 2011
Western Mediterranean destinations continued to be strong, particularly Spain (+11%), Italy (+10%), Greece (+7%) and Portugal (+6%). Africa and the Caribbean also saw an increase.
By contrast, bookings to the US decreased by 3% in summer 2017, most likely as a result of the fall in the value of the pound vs the dollar
In 2017 domestic travel enjoyed another strong year, with 72% of people taking a UK break in the last 12 months.
For 2018 outlook is positive, summer bookings are +5% compared to STLY
Packaged holidays (hence Tour Operators) and particularly all-inclusive are expected to perform particularly well in 2018.
UK holiday makers will start travelling back to the Eastern Mediterranean. Bookings for Turkey for example saw a significant increase of 69% for summer 2018 and Egypt is continuing on its road to recovery with 24% increase in bookings.
In addition, despite the uncertainty of Brexit, Brits remain committed to Europe as a holiday destination.
UK’s 2018 watchlist includes: Argentina, Arizona, British Columbia, Germany, Malta, Montenegro, Nepal, New Zealand, Rwanda, St Lucia, and Sweden

Contacts for this market are based in London, England
Isabella Moroni