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CURRENT MAJOR TOPICS WITHIN THE TOURISM INDUSTRY IN THE DACH REGION

• Travel times shift towards spring and fall: The travel season is increasingly shifting to the shoulder seasons of spring and fall. According to Travel Data + Analytics (TDA), demand for autumn vacations rose sharply in September and sales for the past summer season were nine percent up on the previous year. Bookings are particularly high in September and October, which together with May show the strongest growth. The number of air package tours in these off-peak periods exceeded the peak travel period (June to August), as holidaymakers are increasingly using less expensive travel times or avoiding the hot summer months. For the winter season, TDA reports an 18% increase in sales, although growth fell slightly compared to the previous month. The upcoming 2025 summer season is already showing high early booking sales, which rose by 28% year-on-year in September. Read more
• What inclinations German luxury tourists have: German luxury tourists are discerning travelers who value comfort, exclusivity and sustainability. They prefer five-star hotels, luxury villas and unique experiences, and attach great importance to privacy and quality time with family and friends. While younger travelers (under 30) tend to prefer leisure cruises and long-haul destinations such as the Caribbean, travelers under 50 are increasingly interested in expedition cruises. Wellness offers are also in demand, and German luxury travel providers regularly review their sustainability standards. The number of German luxury tourists is expected to rise to seven million by 2030, with average travel expenditure of around 10,000 euros. Read more
• These destinations were chosen by millionaires for their vacation: Millionaires prefer exclusive and luxurious destinations that offer exclusivity, natural beauty and privacy for their vacations in August 2024. According to the “Luxonomy” portal, Saint-Tropez is the most popular destination. The French city offers glamorous beaches, exclusive nightclubs and a harbor full of luxury yachts. In second place is the Amalfi Coast in Italy, known for its picturesque towns and first-class boutique hotels such as Le Sirenuse. Mykonos in Greece, with its luxurious resorts and lively nightlife, takes third place. The Maldives, in fourth place, offers complete seclusion and luxury in private villas over the water, with activities such as diving and spa visits. Aspen in Colorado, known for skiing and outdoor activities in summer, rounds off the top 5. Read more

• Business travel - VDR disagrees with minister: In its “Transport Forecast 2040”, the Federal Ministry for Digital and Transport (BMDV) predicts a decline in business travel in favor of virtual meetings. The German Travel Management Association (VDR) disagrees: According to President Christoph Carnier, the importance of business travel for the German economy remains high. Although rising costs and environmental aspects are leading to more careful consideration, business trips are still necessary for growth and innovation. Instead of forecasting a decline, the VDR is calling for a reduction in barriers to travel and investment in transport and digital infrastructure to promote mobility. Markus Orth from the German Travel Association (DRV) also emphasizes the importance of business travel for economic growth and calls for a reduction in travel costs. The VDR also criticizes the failure of a flexible mobility budget in the 2024 Annual Tax Act, as it misses an opportunity to make employee mobility more sustainable. Read more
• High winter demand, many early summer bookers: The travel season shows high demand for winter bookings, but early summer bookings for 2025 are already crowding out some of the winter holiday bookings. September proved to be a strong booking month for summer vacations in 2024, with last-minute bookings for September and October together accounting for the highest share of sales in the month. Overall, the 2024 summer season maintained its sales growth of ten percent and outperformed last year's season by nine percent. In September, the number of air package tours in the peripheral months of October and May exceeded that of the peak season, as travelers increasingly prefer spring and autumn to avoid school vacations and hot summer months. The 2024/25 winter season recorded an 18% increase in sales compared to the previous year, although growth slowed slightly. Summer bookings for 2025 also recorded a strong increase of 28%, supported by attractive early booking offers. Read more
• World Association for Indigenous Tourism founded: The Destination Original Indigenous Tourism (DO-IT) organization was officially established to promote Indigenous tourism destinations worldwide. Founded by Indigenous tourism associations from Canada (ITAC), the USA (AIANTA) and New Zealand (New Zealand Māori Tourism), DO-IT aims to act as a global voice for Indigenous tourism and build a sustainable tourism network led by Indigenous communities. At the AIANTA conference in Louisiana, association leaders discussed standards and guidelines for authentic Indigenous experiences to ensure the authenticity of the Destination Original brand. DO-IT's first president is Sebastien Desnoyers-Picard of the Huron-Wendat Nation in Canada, an expert in Indigenous tourism. Other board members include representatives from the founding organizations, including Sherry Rupert, Keith Henry and Dale Stephens. Read more
• These are the top source markets for luxury tourists: The USA will be the largest market for luxury tourism in 2024, with over 18 million trips and an average spend of USD 9500. By 2030, these figures are expected to rise to 22 million trips and USD 11,000 per trip. China records around 20 million luxury trips per year with expenditure of USD 14,500 per trip; by 2030, daily expenditure could rise to USD 1,300. The UK and France follow with high travel costs, while Germany reports 5.5 million trips and €8,800 per trip, which could rise to €10,000 by 2030. Global investment in luxury infrastructure will rise to USD 32 billion in 2024 and USD 55 billion by 2030. Read more
• Hotel choice is a high priority for German guests in Switzerland: Laut einer neuen Studie von Schweiz Tourismus und Hotellerie Suisse, verbringen deutsche Touristen in Schweizer Hotels durchschnittlich 12,5 Stunden täglich – fast die Hälfte ihrer Reisezeit. Diese Erkenntnisse sind Grundlage der neuen Hotelkampagne "Hotels and Lodgings recommended by Switzerland", die zeigt, wie wichtig eine passende Unterkunft für das Reiseerlebnis ist. Besonders Deutsche legen großen Wert auf die Wahl ihres Hotels, ähnlich wichtig wie das Reiseziel selbst. Die Studie fand auch, dass britische Gäste viel Zeit in Hotelaktivitäten wie Wellness und Sport verbringen. Fast 73 Prozent aller Befragten bestätigen, dass eine gute Unterkunft die gesamte Reise bereichert. Die ST-Kampagne, bis zum 19. November 2024 aktiv, bietet auf einer neu gestalteten Website eine kuratierte Auswahl an Hotels, um die perfekte Unterkunft für jede Vorliebe zu finden. Read more

• Almost every second adult listens to podcasts: Almost half of Germans aged 16 and over occasionally listen to podcasts, according to a survey by the digital association Bitkom. Podcasts are more attractive than texts for 72% of listeners and better than videos for 61%. News podcasts are particularly popular, with three quarters of respondents preferring them, followed by music podcasts (56%) and political formats (53%). Topics such as business and finance, health, history and economics are of interest to half of listeners, while science, technology, sport and education are also popular. Around a third listen to podcasts about personalities, travel and family, and comedy, film and TV podcasts are of interest to a quarter of listeners. Only one percent listen to content on religion and spirituality. The survey was conducted with 1,205 people in Germany aged 16 and over and is representative. Read more

CURRENT TOPICS WITHIN THE TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY IN GERMANY & EUROPE

• Ryanair profit falls: Ryanair has reported a net profit of €1.8 billion for the first half of 2024, down 18% year-on-year. This decline is due to lower fares introduced to gain market share and the impact of higher interest rates increasing pressure on consumer spending. Despite the price cuts, the airline was able to carry a record 115 million passengers. However, Ryanair expects fares to rise again in winter. Due to delivery bottlenecks at Boeing, the airline is lowering its passenger growth target for the 2026 financial year from 215 million to 210 million. Following the publication of the figures, the share price fell by 3.1 percent to 17.47 euros. Read more
• Discover Airlines expands US flight offering: Discover Airlines, a subsidiary of Lufthansa, is expanding its long-haul services from Frankfurt and adding Minneapolis as a new destination in summer 2025. The largest city in the US state of Minnesota will be served four times a week from May 2025, with a flight time of around nine hours. Discover is taking over this connection from Lufthansa, which previously operated the route. In total, Discover Airlines' flight program will include 17 long-haul destinations and over 70 weekly connections next summer. The existing North American destinations include Philadelphia, Orlando, Tampa Bay, Fort Myers, Las Vegas, Calgary, Halifax and Anchorage. Some connections will be increased and departure times will be optimized to better meet the needs of travelers. Read more

DESTINATION NEWS

• BERLIN: In order to benefit more from water tourism, the capital is planning more moorings, berths and rest areas on the water. The expansion of the charging infrastructure for boats with electric motors is also an issue. The first Berlin water hiking route with five charging points is due to open in 2025. Orientation on Berlin's waterways is also to become easier. In future, water tourists will be able to access digital information and guidance systems instead of paper waterway maps. Read more
• TURKEY: Turkey recorded strong growth in tourism in the first nine months of 2024 with a total of 49.2 million foreign tourist arrivals, an increase of seven percent compared to the previous year. The average daily spend per visitor amounted to 107 US dollars. Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy explained that the results so far are the best in Turkey's history, which is why the annual target will be raised to 61 million visitors. Istanbul topped the statistics with 14 million arrivals, followed by Antalya, which is particularly popular with German travelers, with 13.3 million. The main source markets of Russia, Germany and the United Kingdom also showed continuous growth. Particularly striking was the increase in visitor numbers from China, which rose by 84 percent year-on-year to 312,000. This puts the Russians in first place with over 5.5 million visitors, while the Germans are in second place with 5.2 million. The British recorded an increase of 17 percent with almost 3.7 million. Read more
• AUSTRIA: Austria is increasingly developing into a year-round destination, as an evaluation of the ÖHV-Inside industry radar shows. Around 50.4 percent of the hotels surveyed have extended their opening hours, particularly in the fall. Ten percent of establishments have switched from seasonal to year-round opening. Markus Gratzer, Secretary General of the Austrian Hotel Association, emphasizes that this development leads to a considerable increase in added value. Overnight stays in Austria have risen by 14.6 percent in the last ten years, with September and October even recording an increase of 21.8 percent. The survey indicates that demand will continue to rise in the coming years. Nine percent of hotels are planning to extend their autumn opening hours, underlining the trend towards year-round destinations. Gratzer calls on politicians to support the industry with targeted measures in order to strengthen the country's economic stability. Read more
• BALI: Bali is planning to build a second airport in the north of the island to cope with growing tourism and the overloaded existing airport in Denpasar. In 2023, Bali counted over 5.2 million international travelers, and around seven million visitors are expected in 2024. The new airport, Buleleng International Airport, is to be built near the coastal town of Kubutambahan. Although the plans were originally shelved, the new president Prabowo Subianto, who took office on October 20, has signaled his support for the project. The creation of a second airport could not only increase capacity, but also help to promote tourism to less developed regions in the north of the island, relieving the congested hotspots in the south. The current airport in Denpasar has a maximum capacity of 24 million passengers and was almost fully utilized in 2023 with 21.5 million travelers. Read more
• BARCELONA: The heavy rain in Spain continues and reached Catalonia on Monday. According to the Spanish media, some areas in and around Barcelona in particular have been flooded. At least 70 flights were canceled after the heavy rain at El Prat International Airport. Photos are circulating on social media showing water pouring through the ceiling of the airport into a terminal and one of the runways and the highway access road under water. Read more