Germans are still keen to travel in 2024 – classic summer destinations are already well booked – early booking prices are easy on the travel budget.
Decide now, save and take advantage of the full range of options: the first few weeks of the year are the main booking period for summer holidays, with tour operators' early booking discounts providing particular incentive. “Germans are in the mood to travel,” says Norbert Fiebig, president of the German Travel Association (DRV). ’And they are booking particularly early this year. Early booking is the trend for 2024.’ This is underlined by the high early booking sales for the coming summer: package and modular tours from tour operators worth around 3.6 billion euros have now been booked in stationary travel agencies and on online travel portals for summer travel between May and October, as shown by an exclusive analysis by Travel Data + Analytics (TDA) on behalf of the DRV. This means that incoming sales are already well above last year's figure (2.4 billion euros) and also above those of the pre-corona year 2019 (3.3 billion euros). The experts of a current market forecast of the DRV are sure that the majority of Germans will travel again this year despite economic uncertainties. Particularly popular for the summer are destinations around the eastern Mediterranean, including Turkey and Greece. A large proportion of the current incoming bookings for organised trips are in this direction. Spain, with the Balearic and Canary Islands and the Spanish mainland, is also very popular with travellers again. Egypt and Tunisia are catching up significantly. A comeback for long-haul travel is expected this summer and cruises are also back with a vengeance. ‘In particular, families with children who are dependent on the holiday periods should consider going to a travel agent to book their summer holiday – and save money in the process,’ says DRV President Fiebig. The early booking discounts are usually valid until the end of February or the end of March. These often offer substantial savings compared to the regular brochure price. The early booking discounts are particularly recommended for families with children who want to travel during the peak season, e.g. during the summer holidays. Here, the early booking offers can often be combined with low fixed prices for children. But all other guests also benefit from the offers if they plan their trip further in advance. Especially if a particular departure airport, a very specific destination or hotel is desired, early booking makes sense – and also saves money. This also applies to cruises if the guest has a specific route or a specific cabin in mind. Early booking is also recommended for study trips, especially if special countries and tours are being considered and there is also often a maximum number of participants. Full selection: Travel agencies can advise and find the perfect holiday. If you book early, the full range of offers is available – the earlier you book, the greater the chance of getting the desired, suitable offer. This is also the difference between early booking and last-minute offers: if you want to take advantage of the latter, you should be relatively flexible in your choice of holiday, because the shorter the notice for booking the trip, the smaller the range of offers available – and it doesn't necessarily have to be cheaper. The structure of the early booking discount varies from tour operator to tour operator. Often, there is a specific date by which the early booking offers can be booked – another variant is to set a specific period before departure, for example, up to 100 days before departure. So there are numerous ways to plan a holiday at a particularly affordable price. Our tip: to find the right one in this wide range of offers, it makes sense to get professional advice from a travel agent. And it's important to know that The price of an identical package holiday from the same provider costs the same on all booking channels. So there are no price differences between holidays booked in a high street travel agency, on the internet or at the airport. Organised holidays, booked through a tour operator, are becoming more and more popular with Germans, as they offer a range of services and support for travellers before, during and after their holiday. Source: German Travel Association (DRV)