– 90% air ticket sales in November – Dubai Maldives Cancun and Punta Cana giving a hope

Was November better than October? Are there symptoms of recovery in subsequent segments? What destinations come out of the crisis first?

November does not bring a breakthrough in the results of air ticket sales in Poland. Agents selling regular airlines recorded a volume decline of 90%. This result is slightly better than in October, when the numerator was -94%. However, this does not change the situation of the industry, although in the November data one can find delicate revival swallows.

Internet agents, seafarers, and consolidators selling far destinations are doing better

As in October, 2-3 market segments seem to be coping much better with the crisis. First of all, these are internet agencies where, despite significant drops in the gross volume (in the order of 80%), we have significantly smaller, 20-30% drops in the number of documents. As these agents live off transaction fees and revenues from booking systems, it is this indicator, i.e. the amount, that is important for them in the context of the pandemic transition.

November is another month in which agencies specialized in the maritime movement are doing well. Declines of 20-30% are a really good result compared to the industry. November is also slightly better in this industry than October, indicating that the latter was not an exception but only the beginning of a “positive trend”.

Finally, a small spark of hope, ie the result of consolidators. Agents handling group traffic and small specialized tour operators record a clearly better result than the average. They are responsible for selling exotic destinations that are the hope for the reconstruction of the market.

Who is doing worse on the airline tickets market

It is still difficult to find hope in the segment of agents focused strictly on servicing business traffic. Global corporations will not start their travels for a long time. A similar situation applies to those specialized in servicing the public tenders segment. Both groups experience declines in gross volumes above 90%.

Dubai, Maldives Cancun Zanzibar Punta Cana and Bogota – save the day

One of the lights in the tunnel is the return of sales of distant exotic destinations. Dubai is the leader of the list (see article about whether LOT should go there).

Dubai its time for LOT to start flying there

The next destinations are listed in the header, appear on the sales list in this order. Interestingly, the main ones show a significant increase in the average ticket price. Perhaps less competition and the desperation of income-seeking lines are causing this price trend. Only Punta Cana experienced a significant drop in the average price.

The increase in sales of this type of directions translates into breath for the consolidators mentioned above. In addition, it is also worth noting the fairly good result of the agent serving the market leader Luxury, i.e. Carter agency. This is also a reason for moderate optimism for this segment.

The slow rebirth of sales of far-flung destinations was also signaled by wakacje.pl. They appear in the Black Friday sales report. Confirming in a way what is happening in the airline ticket industry.

The last week of November – it is significantly better than for the first 3 weeks of the month

Some additional contributor to optimism is the result of the last week of November. It shows an 82% decline in gross sales. So it is significantly better than the first three weeks. It is not a breakthrough yet, but a small spark of hope.

What predictions for the future – only the long travel segment in the next 2-3 months?

It seems that the recent political decisions regarding the winter holidays as well as the covid dynamics will effectively freeze the classic business travel industries. Don’t expect any positive trend until spring. The trend of reconstructing long-distance traffic will continue. Qatar Airways is returning to Warsaw in a moment, the carrier will probably be tempted with additional promotions.

The incentive industry will also shake slightly – there are still several sectors of the economy where we can find well-doing companies, e.g. gaming, photovoltaics, or the so-called covid companies. These clients will certainly invest in incentive travel.

Conclusions for LOT offer planning time Winter 2021/2 – Dubai, Cancun, Egypt?

The winter is also a good time for LOT to rethink its strategies for winter 2021. As you can see from the statistics, LOT is in no way a beneficiary of the recovery in long directions. It does not operate on any of them. In addition to the already mentioned Dubai, perhaps you should seriously consider regular flights to Cancun / Mexico City and fly to Egypt in the Mediterranean?