DER Touristik expects a record summer on the German market

Frankfurt/Main (dpa) – The travel group DER Touristik is expecting a strong year in 2023/24 given the sharp increase in demand on the German market. “With Dertour and the sister brands ITS and Meiers Weltreisen, we are currently heading towards the best summer we have ever had in terms of guest numbers,” said Ingo Burmester, Central Europe boss of the DER Touristik Group on Tuesday. “In addition to the current boom in winter bookings, we are currently experiencing an exceptionally strong start to summer bookings.”

Despite inflation and higher interest rates, according to Burmester, there is a lot of travel again, also because of catch-up effects. Overall, the price increases for the current travel year are likely to be in the mid-single-digit percentage range. “We’ve now noticed that all major airlines increase prices towards the departure date. That’s another reason why it’s worth booking early.”

After the corona pandemic, the industry’s sales increased significantly, also due to price increases. However, the number of travelers initially lagged behind.

According to Burmeister, almost three times as many guests from Germany have booked their summer vacation as in the same period last year. Compared to the pre-Corona level of summer 2018/19, there is an increase of 15 percent. According to the information, the number of guests bookings for the current winter season is 60 percent higher than in the same period last year and only just below the pre-Corona level. Demand for long-distance travel rose particularly sharply.

Significant increase in sales in the tourism year 2022/23

According to Burmester, many sun-seekers are booking long-term again and taking advantage of early bird discounts of up to 60 percent. During their summer vacation, over 40 percent of guests currently combined the early bird tariffs with a flex option starting at 59 euros, which allows short-term rebookings or cancellations.

Dertour and its sister brands, which account for around half of DER Touristik Group sales, closed the past 2022/23 tourism year with an increase in sales including price increases of more than 20 percent. The trend towards higher quality trips was also noticeable. The proportion of guests who booked a 4 or 5 star hotel increased by 10 percent compared to the previous year.

“In the coming year, in addition to increasingly individual trips, we expect continued strong demand for high-quality beach holidays in popular beach destinations,” said Burmester. According to him, Turkey is currently in the lead on short and medium-haul routes, followed by Spain and Greece. According to the information, the trend is still all-inclusive. If you don’t have to pay extra for food and drinks, you have more control over the costs.

© dpa-infocom, dpa:231121-99-24461/2