‘Will I still have a job at Christmas time?’ Travel bookings slow amid uncertainty – and specials
South Africans are leaving it to the last minute to finalise their festive season travel‚ with lead times for bookings decreasing compared to previous years.
Ticket sales show that South Africans are waiting for November and December to finalise their travel for the festive season‚ a departure from the two to four months that it used to take to book an international trip‚ and three to six weeks for domestic travel.
Lead time to book international travel was three to nine months about three years ago‚ and six to 12 weeks for domestic journeys.
Economic and job uncertainty‚ industry competition and travel discounts are behind this change in behaviour‚ says Flight Centre Travel Group‚ SA’s largest travel company.
The group’s statistics show that almost twice as much domestic travel was booked in December 2024 compared to November 2024.
“The trend that emerged last year is continuing this year and it shows that while South Africans used to finalise their travel plans in August to October‚ that is no longer the case‚” says Carlos Luis‚ Land Product Leader for Flight Centre Travel Group.
“Our data is showing that they are now waiting until November and December to book their flights and accommodation‚ especially for local travel.
“Affordability is definitely behind the shift. People are waiting to see if they will be getting a bonus or whether they will have a job before finalising their travel plans.
“Intense competition among airlines and fantastic deals are also causing people to wait before committing.”
Luis says while there is still availability for flights and accommodation in Europe and Asia‚ Flight Centre expects to see availability reduce drastically in the next few weeks.
Availability in Mauritius is scarce.
Deals in South Africa are still available‚ but will become scarcer as South Africans finalise their holiday plans. There is also limited availability of family units available for the peak season‚ especially at the coast.
“While there is availability‚ we expect prices to start rising sharply as travellers finalise their plans. So if you want to go away for the festive season‚ you need to finalise your arrangements as soon as possible to get a better deal‚” he advises.
