An analysis by ForwardKeys, the company that helps anticipate tourism trends by analyzing more than 17 million daily flight bookings, reveals that advance bookings from Spanish outbound tourism are 4.4% higher than expectations for intercontinental travel in the first half of 2018. This analysis will be presented at FITUR, Spain's most important tourism trade fair, which opens on Wednesday, January 17.
The growth in intercontinental tourism reflects the increasing interest in destinations such as Egypt, Cuba, the Dominican Republic, and Thailand.
New air connections will facilitate intercontinental travel in the first months of 2018. Starting in January, it will be possible to fly directly from Madrid to Recife (Brazil) and from Barcelona to Tehran (from January), Boston, and Beijing (from March). In addition, Madrid's air connections with Caracas (Venezuela), Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic), and Quito (Ecuador) will include additional routes operated by various airlines.
The intercontinental destinations with the largest increase in advance bookings for travel during the first half of the year are Egypt, +60.6%, recovering after several years of conflict; the Dominican Republic, +48.4%, benefiting from additional flights in the winter season operated by Wamos Air; and Cuba, +42.6%.
During the Easter holiday period (departures between March 19 and April 1), the U.S. is the most popular intercontinental destination, accounting for 28% of bookings. Other popular destinations during this period, based on bookings made in early January, include Thailand (10%), Cuba (4%), Argentina (4%), and Japan (4%).
Olivier Jager, CEO of ForwardKeys, comments on the analysis results: “It’s an optimistic start to 2018. The case of Egypt is particularly positive, given that it’s such a wonderful destination that has suffered greatly in recent years and, like Spain, is heavily dependent on the tourism sector. Furthermore, it’s also interesting to note how Cuba continues to maintain its appeal and how Thailand is gaining increasing attention. Both destinations have excellent prospects for the coming months.”
