Tendencias del mercado

🏖 Travel Live will participate in the public tender to manage Imserso's travel programs. Competing with Ávoris, which managed Imserso for the last two seasons, Travel Live will also face Mundiplan, W2M, and Senior Plan. New tender documents released on April 17 indicate that lots 1 and 2 (mainland coast and islands) cannot go to the same bidder. With stricter penalties for non-compliance, fines could reach up to €80 million. Bids are due by May 19.

🛫 All Spanish airports remain operational despite a power outage that led to the cancellation of 334 out of 6,000 scheduled flights. Aena advises passengers to check public transport status and consult airlines for possible rescheduling. Airports have adjusted their schedules overnight to accommodate rebooked passengers and report no significant overcrowding at terminals. The flight reductions were mainly due to safety precautions related to telecommunications, states Minister Óscar Puente.

🚃 High-speed and long-distance train services in Spain are gradually resuming after a complete halt due to a power outage. Lines restored include Madrid-Barcelona, Madrid-Valencia/Murcia/Alicante, Madrid-Basque Country, and Madrid-Algeciras. Madrid-Pamplona resumes with delays, and Madrid-Sevilla uses road service between Sevilla-Córdoba. Service is still suspended for routes like Madrid-Santander and Barcelona-Alicante (Euromed). Renfe announces passengers can request refunds or changes at no cost, and that services will be progressively reestablished throughout the day.

🎬 Universal Studios will construct its first European theme park in Bedford, UK, an hour from London, with a £50 billion budget on 190 hectares, set to open in 2031. A whopping 28,000 jobs will be created—20,000 in construction and 8,000 in operation—80% sourced locally. The park, nearly four times larger than Disneyland Paris, aims for 8.5 million annual visitors. Attractions will include Regreso al Futuro, Parque Jurásico, Minions, and a James Bond stunt show, with a 500-room hotel and new rail stop included in the project.

🏖 Since 2022, tourist accommodations in Spain's 728 coastal sun and beach municipalities have grown by 20.5%, adding 206,000 new spots, while hotel offerings increased by 3%, with 35,000 additional spots. Eight of the top 20 sun and beach destinations now have more tourist accommodation spots than hotel beds. These destinations include Costa de la Luz (Cádiz), Costa Tropical (Granada), Costa del Sol (Málaga), Costa Brava (Girona), Costa Blanca (Alicante), Costa de Castellón, Costa Valencia (Valencia), and Costa Cálida (Murcia). The Exceltur report SolyTUR 2024 highlights a "disorderly and uncontrolled growth" in tourist housing, with a total of 1.21 million spots surpassing hotel spots, which are at 1,202,243 according to INE data. Mallorca saw a reduction by 2,325 beds. Costa Valencia has the highest ratio with 2.9 tourist accommodation spots for every hotel spot, while Mallorca has the lowest at 0.4.

🛫 In 2024, International Airlines Group (IAG) faced intensified competition from Chinese airlines increasing their capacity to the UK and Europe. Despite flight bans over Russian airspace elevating fuel costs and flight times, IAG cited successful routes to Bangkok, Singapore, and Tokyo. Iberia resumed Tokyo flights in October, while British Airways halted Beijing but opened Bangkok from London-Gatwick and upped Tokyo frequencies. IAG's capacity grew by 27.5% over 2023 with an 88.9% passenger load factor, a 0.5 point rise from the previous year.

🏠 España remains a favorite tourist destination, with the UK holding a 22.5% market share, followed by national tourism at 47.1%. In the week of April 14-21, hotel bookings from Germany, Thailand, and China soared, as reported by Travelgate. Bookings from Thailand surged by 125%, Germany by 27.4%, and China by 14.8% year-on-year. Ireland and the USA also saw increases of 12.1% and 11.8%, respectively. Catalonia experienced a 0.8% rise in hotel reservations, despite a general downward trend in other Spanish regions.

🏖️ Grecia celebrates a record-breaking Easter with unprecedented hotel occupancy and double-digit demand growth across destinations like Creta, Corfú, Peloponeso, and the Cyclades. Hotel bookings have risen 18.3% from an already excellent 2024, with Greek tourism itself up by more than 12%. Creta saw an 82% increase in reservations, Peloponeso 24%, Athens region 23%, and Corfú over 32%. The rare coincidence of Catholic and Orthodox Easters, not to happen again until 2698, is a contributing factor, attracting both local and Western European tourists.

🏖 The Spanish state-run program Imsero will increase prices for senior tourism packages in the 2025/2026 season starting October this year. Prices range from €132.91 for 4-day provincial capital trips to €464.72 for 10-day trips to Canarias with transport. Three lots offer 874,647 places total, with a €50 flat rate for lower incomes: 3,530 places in Lot 1 (peninsular tourism), 1,835 in Lot 2 (island tourism), and 2,068 in Lot 3 (circuit itineraries). High season and subsequent trips incur a €100 surcharge.

🏨 In Spain, 314 hotel chains operate, owning 79% of the country's 743,600 hotel rooms. The chains include 3,885 hotels, with large chains holding 54.48% of rooms. Independent establishments represent 26.6% of hotels but only 21.02% of rooms, averaging 10.7 rooms each, while chain hotels average 151.2 rooms. This concentration trend stems from growth and acquisition strategies, leveraging international market access, brand recognition, and loyalty programs. Despite the dominance of chains, independent hotels maintain a niche with personalized boutique experiences.