08 January 2009

Online flight searches plummet

UK internet searches for flights have plunged by 42% over the last 12 months, according to latest Hitwise figures.

The economic downturn means that consumers are being more cautious when booking flights abroad this year, acording to the organisation.

As a result of the weak pound, people are switching from holidays in the eurozone or US and considering cheaper destinations such as Turkey and North Africa, or considering taking their holidays at home.

Online searches for flights increased by 58% between the weeks ending December 27 and January 3.

But they were down by 42.4% when compared with the equivalent post-Christmas week last year - the week ending January 5, 2008. Hitwise said.

Flights to the US suffered the biggest annual fall in searches of 52.2%.

Searches for flights to countries that use the euro fell by 44.8%.

Meanwhile searches for flights to the UK and the rest of the world also fell, but at a smaller rate.

There have been big falls in searches for flights to all of the most popular European holiday destinations over the last 12 months: France is down 45.4%, Spain 42.8%, Portugal 41.7% and Italy 41.2%.

Australia remains the most popular non-euro/dollar destination, accounting for almost a quarter of all searches for flights to destinations outside of the UK, US and eurozone.

Searches for flights to Australia have fallen by 32.85% over the last 12 months, but this is at a lower rate than for many other destinations.

Only five destinations saw an increase in flight searches over the last 12 months: Norway, Denmark, Brazil, Morocco and Cuba.

Hitwise head of research Robin Goad said: "It looks like the weak pound is putting people off flying to the Eurozone and the USA, and they are looking at destinations with more favourable exchange rates instead."

Turkey saw the smallest decline in flight searches over the last 12 months - a fall of 24.6% compared with an average of 42.4% for all destinations.

Turkey also overtook Canada and Thailand to become the second most popular non-euro/dollar destination for British tourists.

Goad added: "UK internet users are becoming more sophisticated in the way they search for Turkish holidays.

"Increasingly they are searching for particular towns and resorts, such as Dalaman, Bodrum and Antalya, rather than generic terms like 'flights to Turkey' or 'Turkish holidays'.

"This is similar to the way people search for Spanish or Portuguese holidays, and illustrates how Turkey has become a mainstream destination for British holiday makers".

He said: "The two areas that have benefitted most from the pound falling against the euro are Scandinavia and the cheaper sunshine destinations.

"The Scandinavian countries may still be expensive by global standards, but in relative terms their cost for UK consumers has fallen compared with other European countries.

"In terms of warmer destinations, the weak pound is encouraging people to look further afield for bargains, with places such as Brazil, Morocco, Cuba, Kenya and India all moving up the rankings over the last 12 months."

*Change in UK Internet searches for flights to popular destinations between 05/01/08 and 03/01/09:

• Turkey: -24.6%
• Dubai:  -27.1%
• Thailand: -32.2%
• Australia: -32.8%
• South Africa: -32.9%
• Caribbean: -34.6%
• Italy:  -41.2%
• Portugal: -41.7%
• Spain:  -42.8%
• France: -45.4%

*Destinations with the biggest increase (or smallest decrease) in flight searches between 05/01/08 and 03/01/09:

1. Norway +30.9%
2. Denmark +20.3%
3. Brazil  +19.5%
4. Morocco +2.1%
5. Cuba  +1.2%
6. Kenya  -7.8%
7. India  -12.7%
8. China  -12.8%
9. Hungary -13.7%
10. Singapore -14.6%

by Phil Davies

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Your Comments (3)

This is all just pants

Ever since I began working in travel (oh, what a fateful choice that was!) every year has showed radically different trends. Let me tell you this, yes there is a general downturn but many are waiting for the pound to strengthen against the euro before booking, so why book now when you can get a lastminute deal at half the price? The euro will return to 1.25 - 1.30 by Easter, and then we will see more business. I was on an easyjet flight to Vienna this afternoon which was full, and I paid &#pound;150, so it can't be all that bad! Furthermore, my traffic at euro destination.com is up 25%.

By Gary Phillips, Saturday, January 10, 2009
Norway searches up 30%

It is good to see the popularity of Norway continuing to rise - not surprising with Hurtigruten, fjords, Lofoten and culture in summer, plus northern lights and skiing in winter all growing. We also need to bear in mind that UK - Norway lost its last ferry route in September though, so this is one reason for more people checking for flights. John Thropp, general manager Stavanger Travel norway-travel.co.uk

By John Thropp, Saturday, January 10, 2009
Meta flight search is still growing

What are these numbers based on? Do they include flight meta search engines or just google searches? Would be useful to know more. Dohop.com is a dedicated flight search engine and we have growing number of searches (even after netting out paid visits). If meta flight search in general is growing while flight searches overall are shrinking, it could mean that the world crisis is motivating more travellers to find as cheap flights as possible.

By frosti sigurjonsson, Thursday, January 8, 2009