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New data has shown a strong and increasing demand for cross-border travel and European hotel stays, according to new research from leading global travel service provider Trip.com.
Data from its Ctrip platform found that Chinese travellers in particular are showing increasing interest in travel to Europe, with search volumes for European flights and hotels reportedly “skyrocketing” this summer.
Compared to 2021 pre-summer searches, Ctrip search volume for European flights grew by over 150% in July, and continue to rise in August, peaking on 12th August over 320% higher than the pre-summer volume.
Similarly, Ctrip user searches for European hotels have risen “sharply” too. In August alone, searches for European hotels rose by an average of 80% compared to the January – June average, with the highest search volume recorded on 9 August, when it was up almost 120% on 2021 pre-summer levels.
It comes as cross-border travel is increasingly possible under the EU Digital Covid Certificate Travel Passport scheme and the UK’s traffic light system. Trip.com said its search and booking volumes have grown in line with the opening up of travel.
In addition, it found that hotel bookings made by Trip.com UK users in the second quarter of 2021 rose by 173% year-on-year, and those made by Trip.com France and Germany users rose by 52% and 64% respectively.
The UK, France and Germany ranked among the top 10 hotel destinations by Trip.com global booking volume during the same period, and flight bookings made by Trip.com UK, France and Germany users in June rose by over 200% in each market year-on-year.
Trip.com has now partnered with several UK hotels to assist them with marketing as travel opportunities continue to open. The Londoner, a 5-star boutique hotel in London, has just agreed a future-looking agreement with the group.
The platform has also partnered with top global hotelier, Millennium Hotels and Resorts, boutique stay provider, Edyn Group, and European aparthotel provider, Staycity, who have each seen over 350% recovery this year, to cooperate on expanding coverage and traffic for partners in the rapidly recovering market.
Jane Sun, CEO of Trip.com said: “The global travel recovery is underway and we are strengthening our partnerships in local markets to ensure we are best positioned to support their business’s recovery and growth along with the return of domestic and international travel flows.
“We are eager to share our global expertise through our local teams to deliver the best support for partners, as well as provide our users with the most appealing product offering.”
