US bookings bounce back for Kuoni
Kuoni is reporting a double figure rise in bookings to the US, going against fears of a Trump Slump.
Its latest trends report, released this week, shows that following a dip last year the US is making a swift comeback with bookings up 19% for 2018 departures.
The operator said there has been a spike in interest for fly-drives, particularly San Francisco to Los Angeles and Las Vegas to San Francisco via Death Valley and Yosemite National Park.
The US remains in number five position in Kuoni’s top selling 25 destinations list with the Maldives taking the number one spot for the 15th consecutive year.
At least 27 new resorts have opened in the Maldives since 2013 and a further 23 are due to open this year and next.
New to Kuoni for 2018 is The Floating Resort by Scubaspa and from May it will feature a new island resort called Bathala, a favourite for divers.
Meanwhile, Thailand has knocked Sri Lanka down to fourth position thanks to new Qatar flights and more affordable dining.
Top 25 destinations for 2018:
1. Maldives
2. Mauritius
3. Thailand
4. Sri Lanka
5. USA
6. Italy
7. Indonesia (Bali)
8. Barbados
9. Antigua
10. Mexico
11. India
12. South Africa
13. St Lucia
14. Vietnam
15. UAE
16. Malaysia
17. Greece
18. Canada
19. Kenya
20. Seychelles
21. Australia
22. Spain
23. Tanzania
24. Cuba
25. Portugal
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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