The latest report from the Nuremburg-based research firm GfK† indicated that summer sales dropped by one percent compared to 2014 which, the company suggested, could be explained by the extreme hot weather and the fact that annual school holidays had already begun in most of the country’s federal states. The one percent increase is in keeping with the most recent forecast of the U.S. National Travel and Tourism Office (NTTO) as it relates to Visit USA traffic. That forecast has projected that traffic to America will stay the same in 2015 as it was last year.
Elsewhere, as reported in the German travel trade publication, fvw:
—Travel demand among German consumers was supported by late sales for departures in July and August, which made up 30 percent of total sales.
—Medium-sized tour operators such as Schauinsland, Alltours and FTI are again the main beneficiaries this year, according to analysts, while market leaders TUI and Thomas Cook have only moderate sales growth.
—TUI has increased booking volumes by 1-2 percent, with average prices 4 percent higher, but has only sold 85 percent of its summer program so far, 2 percent less than last year.
—Thomas Cook experienced a 3 percent drop in bookings and has only sold 75 percent of its program.
—Thomas Cook’s market share declined slightly to 13.2 percent in 2014, according to fvw’s annual dossier on German tour operators. DER Touristik has replaced it as number two behind TUI. Meanwhile, fast-growing companies such as FTI, Alltours and Schauinsland-Reisen have gained market share.
