TOUR OPERATORS ARE PLEASED WITH EARLY BIRD BOOKINGS OF GERMAN TRAVELERS

The first weeks of the year are the best time to book summer holidays, with tour operators offering attractive discounts for early bookings. This year, German travelers are booking even earlier. Early booking trend expected in 2024.

“Germans are passionate about travel,” says Norbert Fiebig, chairman of the DRV (German Travel Association). This is reflected in the high sales of advance bookings for summer trips between May and October 2024. According to a special Travel Data + Analytics (TDA) report, modular packages and trips from tour operators are already available worth approximately 3.6 billion euros. Physical travel agencies and online travel portals.

This figure is significantly higher than the previous year’s turnover of 2.4 billion euros and also higher than the year before the pandemic in 2019, which recorded a turnover of 3.3 billion euros.

According to travel market experts, most Germans will travel this year despite the economic uncertainty. Among the most popular summer destinations are Eastern Mediterranean countries such as Turkey and Greece, with many bookings already received for organized trips to these destinations. Spain, with its Balearic Islands, Canary Islands and the mainland, is also popular with German travelers.

Moreover, Egypt and Tunisia are also catching up considerably. Long-haul traffic is expected to return this summer and demand for cruises is expected to increase again.

German tour operators recommend booking your trip in advance to access the full offering. The sooner you book, the better your chances of finding the deal you want. This differs from last-minute deals, which require more flexibility as options become more limited closer to travel dates.

Early bird discounts vary from tour operator to tour operator. Some have a specific deadline for booking, while others have a specific period before the trip, for example up to 100 days before the start of the trip. Please note that early booking does not necessarily mean lower prices, but it does offer a wider range of options.

With so many options available, planning a budget vacation can be difficult. It is important to note that the price of the same tour package from the same provider remains the same across all booking channels. This means that there is no price difference between complete holiday trips booked through a regular travel agency, on the internet or at the airport.

Tour operators are gaining popularity among Germans because they provide protection and support to travelers before, during and after holidays.