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Gareth Williams commented: “The beginning of this year has seen flooding and civil unrest negatively impact short term confidence in tourism to Tunisia, Australia and Sri Lanka. Tunisia has been worst affected with searches plunging 50% following the declaration of a state of emergency.
Brisbane and Cairns searches are 15-20% below where we would expect for this time of year. More surprisingly, Perth and Sydney figures dropped by about 10% showing consumer confidence has been dented across the whole country and not just in the affected areas. Popular long haul holiday destination, Sri Lanka, has also seen a 20% decline in travel enquiries due to the recent flooding.
Research conducted by Skyscanner last year showed that consumers tend to be more deterred by civil unrest than natural disaster but see an immediate fall in interest following either. That said, as long as the event isn’t sustained, appetite for travel quickly recovers.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
