26 May 2021

TUI starts summer season in several European countries

After a break of several months due to the pandemic, this year’s holiday season has started again. TUI is currently welcoming thousands of guests in several destinations. Incidence rates are decreasing, vaccination rates are rising. Restrictions and quarantine obligations are lifted in many European countries and destinations. In addition, developments are accompanied by positive reports, thus increasing customer confidence and boosting holiday bookings. TUI teams in the markets and the destinations have been working hard on preparations and are now ready. The first flights have taken off and more and more hotels are opening their doors to welcome guests.

In the two weeks from May 14 to the end of the month, almost 900 flights across the Group will take off to more than 40 vacation destinations in eight countries. Spain, Greece, Turkey, Portugal and Egypt are particularly popular destinations in May. The most popular gateway is Mallorca, followed by Crete and Antalya. The five most popular gateways for Europeans in May also include the island of Rhodes and the Algarve in Portugal.

Great Britain

Portugal is currently particularly popular with British vacationers. Portugal is generally one of the most popular vacation destinations for British guests. This is currently also reinforced by the fact that all travel restrictions for British vacationers have been lifted for Portugal.

Germany

For German guests, on the other hand, Spain is the most popular vacation. Mallorca is the front-runner. The travel warnings for the Balearic Islands were lifted by the German Foreign Office at the end of March already. In addition, the Canary Islands are also very popular. There is strong demand in Germany also for Greek destinations. In the last two weeks of May alone, a total of around 120 TUI flights are planned from German airports to Greek vacation regions, in particular to Crete and Rhodes, followed by Kos, Corfu and the Peloponnese. From June 1, the TUI program will include 24 Greek regions on the mainland and islands with more than 4,500 hotels. In addition to Spain and Greece, Portugal and Cyprus are currently also in demand.

Belgium / Netherlands

The situation is similar for TUI's Belgian and Dutch guests. They are drawn to Spain in May, especially to the Balearic island of Mallorca, followed by the Greek islands.

Sweden / Denmark

In Sweden, the first vacation flights took off last week. Holiday travel is also possible again for Danes - for the first time in 217 days. A flight took off from Copenhagen to Mallorca on Friday. The most popular destinations for TUI guests from Northern Europe is Greece, especially the islands of Crete, Rhodes and Samos.

Most popular hotels

Demand for the Group's own hotel brands remains very high this year. Four of the five most popular hotels in May are in the portfolio of the Group's own hotel brands. The most popular one is the Robinson Cala Serena in Mallorca, followed by the RUI Gran Canaria and the RIU Playa Park in Palma de Mallorca. The five most popular hotels from the Group's own hotel brands also include Robinson Club Esquinzo Playa on Gran Canaria.

Cruises

TUI Cruises kicked off the summer season last week with Greece. The Mein Schiff 5 departs on week-long voyages from/to Crete. In addition to Rhodes, the ship also calls at Piraeus and Souda on Crete. Another route goes via Crete to Piraeus, Corfu and Katakolon/Olympia. TUI Cruises also offers cruise passengers organized shore excursions. Since Whitsunday, 23 May, Mein Schiff 1 has also started "Blue Voyages" from Germany. The 7-day Baltic Sea cruises from/to Kiel consist exclusively of sea days. Hapag-Lloyd Cruises has started the summer season with Greece. The Europa 2 sails in seven-day voyages from and to Heraklion and calls at the ports of Rhodes, Volos and Piraeus, among others.

Length of stay

On average, TUI guests book a trip with a length of stay of 7.9 days. British TUI guests in particular stay longer in the sun with an average trip duration of 9.2 days, followed by German vacationers with currently 8 days on average.