Distribución y Revenue Management

🏝 Antalya, Turkey, surpasses Mallorca as the top autumn holiday destination for German tourists, with TUI reporting "the highest demand in history." TUI Germany's CEO, Stefan Baumert, highlights Antalya's "unbeatable quality-price ratio" over the Spanish island, where hotel prices have soared, leading to a post-summer booking decline. Other Mediterranean favorites include Creta and Cos in Greece, and Hurgada in Egypt. The fall of travel giant FTI and postponed trips during events like the Eurocup also contributed to the shift in tourist preferences.

✈ Lufthansa's CEO Carsten Spohr visited Globalia's headquarters in Llucmajor, Mallorca, to discuss the potential acquisition of Air Europa, following Iberia's withdrawal due to European Commission obstacles. Air Europa's appeal lies in its strong Latin American presence, lower operating costs than Lufthansa, and Mallorca base, creating synergy opportunities. Lufthansa has also moved ahead of IAG and Air France-KLM in buying a stake in Tap Portugal, aiming for an initial 19.9% to avoid scrutiny. A formal offer for Tap, between €180-200 million, is expected early next year.

🌍 Hoteliers on the Costa del Sol are optimistic about the potential for a direct Air China route to Andalusia. Javier Hernández, executive vice president of Aehcos, believes it would enhance Málaga Airport's status, opening up possibilities for routes to Korea and Japan. Málaga competes with Sevilla, offering advantages like 24-hour operations and handling over 36% of Andalusia's international tourists. Negotiations began after a meeting with Air China executives last week, aiming for a 2025 launch to boost high-income tourism, potentially increasing Chinese tourist arrivals in Andalusia by 188%.

🏨 During the week of September 2-8, hotel bookings in Spain for stays 90 days ahead surged, with 16% of hotel bookings compared to 11% a year ago. Couples made up 56% of bookings; groups 22%, and families 6%. Top destinations were Catalonia (18%), Andalusia (17%), Canary Islands (15.7%), and Balearic Islands (13%), with Madrid, Basque Country, and Murcia seeing significant growth of 34%, 58%, and 78%, respectively.

🏖️ In Andalusia, international visitors have offset the loss of national tourists to northern Spain. Fahat leader Rafael Barba reports a trend reversal in recent years. Hotel occupancy dropped by 3.74 percentage points during June, July, and August compared to last year, with a 13% decline in national visitors in July. Northern destinations like La Coruña, Lugo, Asturias, and Vizcaya benefited, while Málaga and Cádiz saw over 10% drops in some months. Temperatures exceeding 44 degrees Celsius in Andalusia during summer did not deter tourism, counteracting the cooler, less crowded northern alternatives noted by University of Cádiz's Mercedes Jiménez, possibly influenced by the pandemic.

🏖 Viajes desde 170 euros por persona para 6 días y 5 noches disponibles entre septiembre y junio para mayores de 60 años. Programa ofrece destinos nacionales e internacionales incluyendo Benidorm, Peñíscola, y viajes a Portugal y Marruecos. Incluye vuelos, hoteles de hasta 4 estrellas, pensión completa, traslados y seguro. Disponible en todas las agencias que distribuyen Club de Vacaciones.

✈ Iberojet inaugurates cargo operations in Honduras at Palmerola's new terminal, using an Airbus A350 for a regular flight from Madrid. The airline from Ávoris, which started Madrid-Palmerola flights in November 2022 with two weekly direct flights, will begin weekly operations from Barcelona in October. This move aims to transform Comayagua into a strategic logistics hub, boosting key sectors like textiles and manufacturing.

🏠 In 2023, eDreams Odigeo led online travel agencies in Spain with €621M in revenue, Logitravel followed with €258.2M, and eBooking.com with €247M. The e-commerce sector for travel agencies and operators in Spain saw a 40% business volume increase, reaching €8.893B last year. Logitravel experienced the highest growth post-pandemic, with a 447% rise in annual revenue. Spanish travel purchases from abroad grew by 134% from 2022, surging from €1.466B to €3.445B. Despite the recovery in travel demand, venture capital interest in new online travel agencies is nearly nonexistent due to a mature, oligopoly-dominated market.

✈ British Airways canceled 100 flights on Friday and 60 on Saturday, affecting 25,000 passengers mainly across Europe. The airline cited "adverse weather in London" as the reason, which was questioned as no other airlines at Heathrow or London City canceled flights due to weather. Affected destinations included Barcelona, Florence, Dublin, Athens, Naples, Venice, Málaga, Ibiza, Mallorca, and Larnaca, leaving passengers stranded without viable travel alternatives.

💰 Imserso's travel program in the Basque Country will start its booking phase on September 25, with sales opening on September 23. A total of 886,269 spots are available, with the booking period for other regions in Spain starting on September 23 and 25. The distribution is split into three main lots: 443,887 coastal, 230,039 insular, and 212,343 for longer trips and European tourism. Pensioners will receive nearly 3 million letters (2,853,985) confirming accreditation for the program. Reservations require a payment not exceeding 20% of the total trip cost, 45 days before departure or at booking if the trip starts in October or November with less than 45 days' notice.