The view from here is brightening and there’s lots of evidence to back that up. First off, while it’s not the best news for travelers, airlines feel confident enough about strong holiday booking trends that they are adding $10 surcharges on peak days around Thanksgiving and Christmas. They would not be doing that if they did not see clear signs of improving demand.
(You know that there are a LOT of grandkids who did not get to see grandparents last winter when we were all in shock over the financial system meltdown and put the brakes on holiday trips. That’s less likely this year…)
Also, American Express is saying the decline business travel seems to be bottoming out, and demand is on the rise, which will lead to slightly higher airfares next year, while hotel rates will decline slightly (but not as much as they crashed this year.) We are thinking that everyone who has missed out on important meetings, tradeshows and conventions this year are now chomping at the bit and ready to hit the road again as the economy warms up.
So, I think all this points to a phrase we’ll all be hearing a LOT more this fall: PENT UP DEMAND. When it comes to holiday travel bookings, we suggest you go ahead and purchase now, because prices are much more likely to increase than decrease. And they might just POP up if we keep hearing positive economic news.
Happy Travels!
Chris McGinnis, Editor & Publisher, THE TICKET. www.travelskills.com
What do YOU think? Is a release of pent up demand on the horizon….or not? We’d love to hear your comments! Leave them right here:
Don’t Forget! BOOK ALL YOUR ONLINE TRAVEL VIA LINKS FROM THE TICKET!
airtran.com | delta.com | Hotwire
Leave a Reply