International and domestic travel bookings remain bleak says Amadeus

• Middle East and Africa only region to escape decline
• Australians flock to online booking, up by 26 per cent

Sydney, 18 June 2009: Amadeus, a global leader in technology and distribution solutions for the travel and tourism industry, today revealed that both international and domestic air travel bookings made through travel agencies in Australia remain down by around 12 per cent compared to 2008 bookings. 

Globally, European destinations have been worst hit, suffering a 25 per cent drop.  Only one region experienced an increase in travellers, with the Middle East and Africa attracting 8 per cent more Australian visitors.  South America had the least impact, with a decline of only 1 per cent, whilst North America has seen bookings slump 22 per cent.  Asia Pacific is down 12 per cent.

“These are some very sobering figures for the Australian travel industry,” commented David Brett, President of Amadeus Asia Pacific. “Clearly the financial crisis and corresponding drop in consumer confidence is having a significant impact on Australians’ willingness to travel,” said Brett.

Whilst bookings are down across the board, business class is in the sharpest decline, dropping 36 per cent. Surprisingly, first class bookings in Australia have actually seen a very slight increase of almost 2.5 per cent – possibly due to the inelasticity of this traveler group to downgrade, and the introduction of new first-class product in the form of A380 aircraft.

Despite the continued downturn in international travel overall, long-haul travel started to show signs of recovery in April while short haul travel (trans-Tasman) continued to fall.

“The ongoing drop in passenger bookings across the board obviously has a significant economic impact for the travel industry, but we are seeing some signs of hope with long-haul travel numbers improving in April. However, the big picture remains pretty bleak, and it’s little wonder that airlines and travel agencies are looking to maximise efficiencies in their operations and reduce operating costs,” said Brett.

Growth in online travel agencies
Whilst traveller numbers have declined, the proportion of online bookings has grown sharply, increasing by 26 per cent.

Tim Russell, Managing Director of Amadeus Australia and New Zealand, said, “Online travel agencies are benefiting from the current economic environment, with travellers believing that the best prices can be found online. However, we also see that the more savvy traditional travel agents can offer equal or better pricing to what is found on the Internet.

“At the same time, I’m happy to see that an increasing number of traditional travel agencies are moving online in response to changing customer behaviour, which is also contributing to the growth in this sector. Amadeus provides the technology that drives most of the major online travel sites in Australia including Expedia, Jetabroad.com.au, and Qantas.com.au. We are committed to supporting the evolution of the Australian travel industry with technologies that will ensure long-term business viability for all players.”

Airline IT upgrades
Due to the challenging economic environment, airlines are putting their IT operating systems under the microscope, trying to find ways to manage processes more efficiently, and to improve customer service so that passengers will become loyal to their brand.