THE coronavirus pandemic has brought about irrevocable changes in the world of travel. Travel priorities along with the pattern of booking and planning have seen considerable changes throughout 2020 in the Middle East and the rest of the world.
In the latest Customer Behaviour Report 2021 from Wego we identified some key insights into what the MENA (Middle East and North Africa) traveller looks like after the Covid-19 outbreak, and how behaviour has changed.
Increase in domestic travel
While several countries have started reopening, now that it is almost the end of 2020, the preference is still high for domestic travel. There has been approximately a 50% increase in searches for domestic destinations. The closing of international borders and strict travel requirements have nudged travellers to explore their own countries. Beyond this, the boom in domestic travel has also been a lifeline for the local economy and tourism industry.
We predict a shift in the near future as the rise in the number of travel bubbles can prove to be a major boost to international travel.
Shorter trip duration
The number of short trips (between one to three days) has increased by approximately 33%, whereas the number of long trips (12 or more days) has decreased by 35%. This could indicate that people are more likely to travel for essential purposes such as short business trips. In several places business travellers are also exempted from days of quarantine and testing requirements when they produce proof of their return journey.
Increase in one-way flights
One-way trips have increased by 50% post Covid-19 as people seem to be booking flights one at a time to avoid return cancellations. With rampant changes in travel restrictions people are looking for more flexibility, and would certainly prefer to avoid the hassle of rebooking and rescheduling. It is also likely that a majority of these bookings are from those travellers returning home on repatriation flights, hence the one-way trend.
Shorter booking lead time
With essential short duration travel like business trips, people are also now booking their trips in a shorter window. Bookings between one to seven days before flying have increased by 10%.
People booking their trips in a longer window (more than 60 days before flying) decreased 300% as these types of bookings tend to mostly indicate leisurely trips or vacations, which have taken a nosedive due to the pandemic. Plus, the confusion over shifting travel restrictions at the destination hovers around, causing travellers to feel less confident about longer window bookings.
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