German travel spend hits record €23 bn despite crisis

Despite the eurozone crisis, tour operators in Germany have reported record revenues of more than €23 billion this year, Oliver Graue, chief editor of German travel magazine BizTravel told The Times Business.

Travel agencies remained Germany’s top booking channel

Mr Graue was in Malta last Friday to deliver the keynote address at the Malta Hotels and Restaurants Association’s annual general meeting when he outlined the economic situation in Germany and people’s attitude to travel.

“Even in 2009 when the economic situation in Germany was very hard, people continued to travel,” he explained. “A few years ago, it was a question of safeguarding the home, the car and the boat, for instance. Now travel is also a foremost priority to Germans. It is an important factor in their lifestyle and one of the last things they would want to forego, even in hard times.”

German tour operators were constantly designing new travel packages and targeting a growing number of niche markets with hundreds of catalogues every year.

Malta, he added, has the “perfect” offering for the German market: with its package of culture, nature, and lots to do, the destination offered a “combination for an experience”.

Greece, for example, which had a record number of German visitors this year, was popular as it had many stories to tell, along with destinations like Spain and Turkey.

Malta, Mr Graue pointed out, also had numerous stories to tell, a characteristic Germans were fond of in their travel destinations, which was complemented by top quality hotels and a sound infrastructure.

Mr Graue knows Malta well. He first visited Malta in 1986 and then again almost every year since 2002. This month, he will return for his 10th visit with his wife as it was their favourite destination for breaks.

He stressed Malta had not been perceived to be unsafe by German travellers during the Libyan crisis. Although they were quick to cancel all travel to North Africa, Mr Graue was confident they would return to the region next year particularly on chartered flights.

Campaigns for Egypt- and Tunisia-based conference and incentives have already started with highly attractive pricing as operators attempt to lure event managers away from the German favourite Majorca.

Malta was also a top choice with German conference organisers, particularly as the island allowed for more straightforward logistical arrangements and was easily accessible with short, direct flights.

Tour operators looked very favourably upon Malta’s efficient destination management company community and the fact that the islands were English-speaking and offered a host of cultural and entertainment options, Mr Graue added.

Ultimately organisers looked to arrange events which participants would remember, Mr Graue stressed, and Malta boasted the amenities for a memorable experience.

Malta, however, was facing increasing competition from new MICE destinations like the Algarve and some Spanish resorts which had jumped on the bandwagon with attractive packages and pricing in a bid to keep their operation ticking over in the shoulder months.

Meanwhile, the trend for individual travellers to take short breaks often was set to continue, Mr Graue said. More than 35 per cent of German travellers said they planned at least one short break next year, although more than three-quarters of getaways would be limited to domestic travel.

Older travellers were more likely to stay within Germany’s borders when they chose their holiday destination and preferred to travel in the low season. They were, however, inclined to spend more during their holidays as their spending power was stronger than young people’s. They were also particularly fond of cruises.

Travel agencies remained Germany’s top booking channel and the industry was still “very relevant” in comparison to other countries where the sector had experienced severe shrinkage.

“Germans carry out their research online but place their bookings through travel agents,” Mr Graue explained. “To a large extent, that will not change soon. Of course, younger travellers book online. Frequent travellers, however, are very well informed after extensive research online but still turn to a travel agent when it comes to bookings.”

Mr Graue pointed out that under German law, pricing advertised online could not be lower than that advertised by travel agents, an issue of discussion among German travellers every year. Online operators contested the rules which were seen to protect the country’s 10,000 agencies.

German business traveller trends were continuing to adapt to economic sentiment. In 2009, companies banned business class bookings for all travel, including long-haul journeys. Even sectors like pharmaceuticals which were not hit by the crisis in 2009 cut down on travel by private jet and avoided splashing out on premium seats.

Company travel policies were now being relaxed and key managers and directors were allowed to upgrade from economy to business if flights lasted longer than six hours, he said.

Mr Graue’s magazine BizTravel is one of four travel publications produced by publishing house FVW Media Group. Issued bi-monthly with a circulation of 35,000, it has a readership of business travellers, conference and incentive agencies, and event managers.