Market Update - 15.08.24

CURRENT MAJOR TOPICS WITH THE TOURISM INDUSTRY IN THE DACH REGION

• NO RECOGNISABLE TREND TOWARDS MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FIRENDLY TRAVEL: A survey by the chambers of industry and commerce in Lower Saxony shows that the car is still the preferred means of transportation for holidaymakers in the state. Around 90 percent of guests arrive by car and also use it when they are there. Although there is a desire for sustainable travel, there is no discernible trend towards more environmentally friendly mobility. The main reasons for choosing a car are safety, convenience and flexibility. The IHKN is therefore calling for climate-friendly alternatives to be made more attractive, for example through better rail connections, reliable local transport and the expansion of charging infrastructure for electric cars. Despite the challenges, tourism in Lower Saxony almost returned to pre-coronavirus pandemic levels in 2023. Read more

• MORE AND MORE TOURISTS ARE DRAWN TO THE COLD: More and more tourists are opting for cooler vacation regions in Europe due to climate change, as an EU study shows. Scandinavian countries are already benefiting from this trend and are specifically marketing the moderate temperatures as "coolcation". Tourists are fleeing the heat in southern Europe and looking for more pleasant climatic conditions in countries such as Norway and Sweden. This is leading to an increase in tourist numbers, but also to discussions about the ethical implications of exploiting climate change for tourism purposes. While tourism is increasing in the north of Europe, there is a threat of a decline in the south. Read more

• ASI-REISEN TAKES OVER THE LUXURY TOUR OPERATOR WINDROSE: On August 9, the Innsbruck-based family business ASI Reisen took over the luxury tour operator Windrose Finest Travel GmbH, which was previously a subsidiary of the FTI Group but was not affected by its insolvency. ASI Reisen plans to build a group of companies with shared, medium-sized values and sees the takeover of Windrose as the first step. The Windrose location in Berlin will be retained and the current Managing Director Christian Böll will continue to run the business largely independently. ASI Reisen is prepared to invest in the brand, particularly in quality and digitalization. Both companies see the takeover as an opportunity to grow together in the luxury experience sector. Read more

• ALLTOURS: ROADSHOW STOPS OFF IN 22 CITIES: Between September 3 and October 30, Alltours is organizing a roadshow in 22 cities. The latest travel trends and offers will be presented in an entertaining quiz format. Travel sellers have the opportunity to talk to regional managers and the sales force. There will also be a travel fair and a competition. The events start at 18:00 with the travel fair. Registration is now open. The roadshow starts on September 3 in Erfurt and ends on October 30 in Oldenburg. Read more

• MSC: NEW ROUTE PLANNING TOOL REDUCES EMISSIONS: MSC has developed a new route planning tool called "Opti Cruise", which aims to reduce the emissions of its cruise ships by up to 15 percent by 2026. This mathematical model, developed in collaboration with the research company Opti Measy, optimizes itineraries by taking into account various factors such as port sequencing, ship speed, fuel costs and the attractiveness of destinations. Following a twelve-month test on the MSC Bellissima in the Mediterranean, the positive effects should be visible from 2026, when the MSC fleet has grown to 24 ships. The tool is part of the EU-funded "CHEK" project to promote low-carbon shipping. Read more

• FTI INSOLVENCY: DRSF STARTS REFUND PROCESS: After more than ten weeks since the insolvency of the FTI Group, the German Travel Security Fund (DRSF) has started the refund process for affected customers of FTI Touristik and Big Xtra. Customers whose contact details are complete were informed by e-mail on Thursday, August 8 and can submit their refund request online. Only one refund request is required for each trip and additional travelers will not be contacted separately. Customers whose contact details are not yet complete will receive further information on registration by post. For the application, customers need the booking confirmation, proof of payment and the DRSF insurance certificate. For trips with several people, powers of attorney from all fellow travelers are also required. The DRSF expects a reimbursement volume in the "mid three-digit million range". In total, payments for more than 215,000 canceled trips and a further 60,000 trips that have already been taken are to be reimbursed in the coming weeks. DRSF Managing Director Ali Arnaout emphasizes the importance of this reimbursement process for consumer protection in Germany. Read more

• HOW SCAMMERS USE TOURISM TO THEIR ADVANTAGE: Scammers are increasingly using the tourism industry to obtain personal data and money. Scammers use fake websites, phishing emails, text messages and WhatsApp messages. The Federal Network Agency registered an increase in SMS phishing cases in 2023. Companies such as Lufthansa and Airplus warn against such scams and recommend only using official URLs and not disclosing any sensitive data. Companies should regularly inform their employees about these dangers. Read more

• TOURISM SALES FALL AGAIN IN JULY: The FTI insolvency left a noticeable mark on travel agency sales in July. Despite the summer vacations, the agencies participating in the Tats-Reisebüro-Spiegel recorded a 1.7% decline in invoiced tourism sales compared to the previous year. The package tour segment was particularly affected. In contrast, sales in other segments increased: Cruises increased by 1.7%, air ticket sales by 5% and other sales by as much as 10.6%. Overall, total travel agency sales grew by 2.6% in July. From January to July 2024, total sales were up 3.1% on the previous year. Read more

CURRENT TOPICS WITHIN THE TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY IN GERMANY & EUROPE

• DISNEY ANNOUNCES NEW SHIPS AND ATTRACTIONS: Disney is planning to expand its cruise fleet with four new ships between 2027 and 2031, which will increase the Disney Cruise Line to a total of 13 ships. These newbuilds will follow the Disney Treasure, which will enter service in December 2024, and the Disney Destiny, which is scheduled to follow in 2025. Details on the size and passenger capacity of the new ships are not yet known. Whether the newbuilds belong to the existing Triton/Wish Class or represent a new class of ship also remains to be seen. The ships will be built by Meyer Werft, which puts the struggling Papenburg shipyard back in the spotlight. Read more

• FLYDUBAI LANDS IN BASEL FOR THE FIRST TIME: Flydubai, the first airline from the UAE, launched its first flight to EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg (BSL) on Wednesday. The airline now connects Dubai International (DXB) with Basel four times a week. The Boeing 737 was welcomed with a water cannon salute. Flydubai is thus expanding its European network to 29 destinations. Jeyhun Efendi, Senior Vice President of Flydubai, emphasized the importance of Basel as a hub for Switzerland, France and Germany and highlighted the benefits of the connection for travelers. Flights will operate on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Economy Class Lite tickets cost from CHF 500, Business Class from CHF 3325. Emirates offers codeshare connections for additional connection options via Dubai. Read more

• COLLECTIVE WAGE AGREEMENT AND STRIKE THREAT AT DISCOVER: Discover, the Lufthansa subsidiary, has concluded collective wage agreements for its pilots and cabin crew. The agreements secure salary increases for around 500 pilots and 1,400 cabin crew, which will come into effect in July. Pilots' salaries will rise by at least 15.7% and cabin crew salaries by up to 38.4%. An annual pay rise of five percent is planned from 2025. However, the agreement with the trade union Verdi is causing tensions within the Lufthansa Group. Vereinigung Cockpit (VC) is threatening to strike as it was not included in the negotiations and is also demanding collective agreements. The flight attendants' union Ufo criticizes the agreement as a "scandal", as it and VC together represent almost half of Discover's employees. Ufo is demanding a membership census to clarify the level of representation. A strike in the summer could be imminent if no agreement is reached with the other unions. Read more

• TRAFFIC FIGURES FOR GERMAN AIRPORTS IN THE FIRST HALF OF 2024: In the first half of 2024, the 28 most important German airports recorded an increase in passenger numbers of 10.2% to a total of 96.7 million passengers. Despite this growth, the figures remain below the records of the pre-corona period. In June 2024 in particular, the gap to the peak figures widened, which worries the ADV statisticians. Domestic traffic reached 11.5 million passengers, a decrease of 50.7% compared to the pre-pandemic period. European traffic is at 88.8% of the pre-corona level and intercontinental traffic at 93.4%. Compared to the previous year, passenger numbers increased by 11.1% on intercontinental routes, by 10.8% on European routes and by 6.5% on domestic flights. The largest airports in terms of passenger numbers in the first half of 2024 were Frankfurt with 28,729,826 passengers, Munich with 19,081,213 and Berlin with 11,826,385, followed by Düsseldorf with 9,106,390, Hamburg with 6,734,955, Cologne/Bonn with 4,357,350 and Stuttgart with 4,037,186. Hanover, Nuremberg and Memmingen complete the top ten. There were particularly positive developments at Münster/Osnabrück, Weeze, Saarbrücken and Paderborn/Lippstadt airports, which recorded strong percentage increases. In contrast, Lübeck, Friedrichshafen, Rostock-Laage and other airports recorded declines in passenger numbers. Read more

DESTINATION NEWS

• SPAIN: Spain recorded over 42.5 million visitors in the first half of 2024, an increase of 13.4% compared to the previous year. Germany remains the second most important source market after the UK, with 5.5 million German holidaymakers and growth of just under 11%. However, 1.9% fewer Germans traveled to Spain in June compared to the previous year, and the length of stay fell slightly to 6.9 days. Despite this decline, spending by German tourists rose by 2.7% to 1.3 billion euros in June. The Balearic Islands remain the most popular destination, followed by the Canary Islands and Catalonia. Read more

• The unemployment rate in Spain fell to 11.3% in the second quarter of 2024, compared to 12.3% in the previous quarter. The main reason for this is the ongoing tourism boom, which has created numerous jobs in the service sector. The service sector recorded the sharpest decline, with almost 200,000 fewer job seekers. Overall, the number of people employed in Spain rose by 434,700 to a new record of 21.68 million. Despite the positive development, the Association of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises of Mallorca (Pimem) warns of difficulties in filling qualified positions. The tourism industry, especially in the Balearic Islands, continues to experience high employment levels due to the strong season and the after-effects of the previous year. The United Kingdom remains the most important source market with over 6.3 million tourists, followed by France and Germany. Read more

• BRAZIL: A tragic plane crash in Brazil has claimed the lives of all 62 occupants. The Voepass airline plane, an ATR-72 turboprop aircraft, crashed into a residential area in the small town of Vinhedo shortly before reaching its destination in São Paulo. Investigators have since recovered the black boxes containing crucial voice and flight data, which are now being analyzed. Initial indications suggest that ice formation on the wings could be a possible cause, as there were warnings of ice formation and thunderstorms in the region of the crash. The plane plummeted almost 4,000 meters in altitude within a minute and exploded on impact. All the bodies were recovered. The crash is one of the worst in the history of Brazilian aviation, similar to the TAM accident in 2007 and the accident involving the Chapecoense soccer club in 2016. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has ordered three days of national mourning. Read more

• THAILAND: Thailand is experiencing a massive upturn in tourism following the coronavirus pandemic. The Thai government expects almost 38 million foreign visitors in 2024, an increase of around 35% compared to the previous year. This figure is only just below the record set in 2019, when the country recorded almost 40 million visitors. The government attributes this growth to the easing of entry regulations, the increase in flights, advertising by social media influencers and new events such as the Amazing Beach Life Festival. To further promote tourism, the Tourism Authority of Thailand has launched the "Amazing Thailand 365 Days" campaign, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help guests plan their trip. The aim of the campaign is to promote lesser-known provinces such as Mae Hong Son, Ayutthaya and Trang and encourage tourists to travel outside the high season. The initiative aims to increase convenience and modernize tourism by providing comprehensive information on attractions and events online. Read more

• HAWAII: Hawaii Tourism is organizing a roadshow in Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Munich and Zurich from 2 to 5 September. At the evening events, which start at 6 pm, travel agents will be treated to insider tips on the destination, catering, dance performances and a competition. Participating partners include Condor, Courtyard, Highgate, Marriott, Outrigger Resorts & Hotels and Kualoa Ranch. Read more

• AUSTRIA: Tourism in Lower Austria remains stable, with a minimal decline of 0.1% compared to the previous year. The slight increase of 0.6% in domestic guests in June is particularly pleasing. Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner emphasizes the attractiveness of nature and the diverse cultural offerings that draw many visitors. Hiking and cycling vacations and camping are particularly popular. Michael Duscher, Managing Director of Niederösterreich Werbung, emphasizes the popularity of summer activities such as swimming, hiking and excursions. The "Culture with Winegrowers" series of events and the upcoming wine autumn are further attractions. The winter season was positive with 1.3% more overnight stays, particularly thanks to German guests, who brought a plus of 5.5%. Despite weather-related losses in June, Lower Austria performed better than other federal regions, and the strong summer months of July and August are still to come. Read more

• EGYPT: Despite the FTI insolvency, Egypt is expecting a strong travel year from Germany. Higher travel prices are making the country more attractive, especially for families. Other tour operators such as TUI, Alltours and Schauinsland have quickly filled the gap in flight offerings left by FTI. New flight connections are planned for the winter, including Easyjet flights from Berlin to Cairo and Sundair flights to Luxor. The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism is aiming for an increase in guests of 15 percent and emphasizes that "overtourism" is not an issue. While Egypt's Mediterranean coast is still little known on the German market, there are already well-booked direct flights from other countries. The future of the Egyptian tourist office in Berlin remains unclear and its possible closure is worrying the industry. Read more

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