Distribución y Revenue Management

🏖 Imserso's travel program starts on September 23, 2024, with 886,269 spots available for Spanish retirees. Sales open September 23-24 for Andalusia, Aragon, Cantabria, Castilla y León, Valencia, Extremadura, Madrid, Melilla, and Murcia; September 25-26 for Asturias, Catalonia, Castilla-La Mancha, Ceuta, Galicia, Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, La Rioja, Navarra, Basque Country. Reservations can be made via Turismo Social's website or accredited travel agencies like B the travel Brand, Halcón Viajes, and Viajes El Corte Inglés. Additional bookings possible if spots remain after two business days.

🏖 Hoteliers and tour operators have expressed satisfaction with sales performance in early September and the outlook for the remainder of the month. The data shows sales figures for the last weeks of summer at least on par with the same period last year, which had historic volumes and revenues. Despite a disappointing demand in August and early July, the current sentiment across Spanish regions is a return to high occupancy and prices, similar to the strong early-year consumer sentiment. By year-end, most large tourism companies are expected to approach their 2023 results, avoiding the revenue declines seen in sectors like restaurants and retail.

🏖️ El Barómetro Turístico de Braintrust indica que, tras la pandemia, los consumidores españoles prefieren experiencias sobre bienes materiales. Entretenimiento y esparcimiento son el segundo mayor gasto para hogares españoles, después de vivienda y alimentación. Hogares de ingresos altos destinan 12.2% a restaurantes y hoteles, un aumento desde 11.9% en 2019, mientras que hogares de bajos ingresos asignan solo 5.9%, reducido de 6% pre-pandemia. El gasto total en vivienda y alimentación es del 42.5% en ingresos altos, 49.5% en ingresos medios, y 59.6% en ingresos bajos. La inflación ha limitado el gasto en ocio de muchas familias. Ángel García Butragueño, director de Turismo en Braintrust, sugiere que la euforia turística está más vinculada al turismo extranjero.

🏠 Spanish consumer spending on travel agencies dropped for the third consecutive month in August. CaixaBank's Consumption Monitor showed a 5.7% decrease in August, following declines in July (1.5%) and June (3%), and a near stagnation in May (+0.1%). In contrast, spending increased for hotels (+7.6%), culture and shows (+8%), dining (+11%), transportation (+3.9%), while gas stations saw a -4.3% drop. Despite a positive summer, CEAV notes a slowdown in July and August reservations. DBK forecasts a 9% growth in the wholesale travel market in 2024, reaching €5.9 billion, down from last year's 17%. Retail agencies are also projected to grow by 9%, hitting €12.6 billion, compared to an 18.4% growth the previous year.

🏖️ Hoteliers in Benidorm are eager for the launch of a senior program parallel to Imserso in the Valencian Community, aiming to maintain operations during the off-season and "desestacionalizar la demanda." Hosbec's secretary-general, Mayte García, sees it as an innovative social program model and encourages establishments to join once it's officially unveiled. The initiative, similar to the "Bono-viaje" post-pandemic program, targets Valencian citizens and could offer a more lucrative option compared to the official 2024/2024 Imserso program, which García deems unprofitable with negotiations only improving by about one euro against production costs estimated at over 30 euros plus VAT.

🏖 Brujas, una ciudad de 120,000 habitantes, recibe diariamente cerca de 30,000 turistas, aumentando su población en un 25%. Debido a la presión del turismo y las protestas vecinales, la municipalidad ha decidido frenar la expansión de Airbnb y plataformas similares para proteger la calidad de vida residencial y controlar la escalada de precios de alquileres. La medida no modificará los alquileres existentes, sino que congelará su número.

🏖️ Andalucía's travel agencies report a "very positive" summer season with expectations met. Anticipated sales, especially early in the year, have slowed sales in July and August. First-semester revenues for agencies climbed nearly 10% from 2023, marking a 27% increase in the services sector. International tourist numbers in Andalucía until July 2024 reached 1,461,773, contributing to the optimistic outlook for the year's last quarter.

🏨 Marriott International Inc. tops the 2023 ranking of the world's largest hotel companies by sales volume and number of rooms. According to Forbes estimates, Marriott achieved approximately $24 billion in revenue. MGM Resorts International followed with $16.67 billion in sales. Others listed include Caesars Entertainment Corp ($11.44 billion), Las Vegas Sands Corp ($11.21 billion), and Hilton Worldwide Holdings ($10.52 billion). Adjusted figures from Marriott report a revenue of $23.713 billion for 2023, spanning across approximately 1.56 million hotel rooms globally under various brands.

🏨 Since January 2021, the AI Reservation Agent by Asksuite has generated over MXN$13,750,000 in sales for Camino Real Hoteles, achieving more than 3 times the ROI. The system offers 24/7 high-quality responses, comprehending up to 90% of the most common questions with AI. This has significantly improved customer experience and reduced the manual workload for the reservation team, allowing them to focus on strategic tasks and revenue-generating activities.

✈ Air Belgium may cease to exist in October if its financial situation doesn't improve. The airline's public search for investors yielded no takers, leaving it with a mere two weeks to survive. Air Belgium needs €18 million to stay afloat but only managed to secure €6 million. The current 35% owner, the government of Wallonia, has been asked to invest an additional €10 million, which seems unlikely. The company has been given a year to restructure, with the deadline approaching in two weeks.