‘Everywhere’ top searched destination, up between 73-124% vs the same period in January 2023 as European travellers search for inspiration and value.
LONDON – Skyscanner has registered a record week of travel demand amongst European travellers as 2024 gets off to a flying start. Analysis shows up to 33% YoY growth in demand in some markets compared to the same week in in January in 2023 the highest volume of redirects – a proxy for bookings – recorded by the company in a single week.*
Searches to ‘Everywhere’ also increased between 73-124% compared to the same week in January 2023, highlighting that travellers are searching for inspiration and value.
Top redirected destinations include a mix of long-haul destinations such as Bangkok, London and New York as well as European short-haul favourites such as Paris, Barcelona and Malaga. Top trending destinations indicate popularity in both VFR and leisure travel ranging from Sialkot, Pakistan to Heraklion, Greece.
Top three destinations by market:
| UK | ES | FR | DE | IT | NL |
| Bangkok | London | London | Palma | Paris | Bangkok |
| New York | Rome | Rome | Istanbul | London | London |
| Dubai | Paris | Marrakech | Bangkok | New York | Malaga |
Top three trending destinations by market (% YoY increase in redirects*):
| UK | ES | FR | DE | IT | NL |
| Sialkot, Pakistan +212% | Manila, Philippines +185% | Heraklion, Greece+119% | Tromso, Norway+175% | Manila, Phillippines+114% | New York, USA+114% |
| Bejing, China +152% | Medellin, Colombia+177% | Madeira, Portugal+90% | Jeddah, Saudi Arabia+167% | Nice, France +113% | Ho Chin Min, Vietnam+93% |
| Thiruvananthapuram, India +146% | Denpasar, Bali+95% | Miami, USA +65% | Tehran, Iran +162% | Zanzibar +108% | Cairo, Egypt +76% |
Hugh Aitken, Skyscanner’s VP Strategic Relations and Development commented: “January is the peak booking time for many travellers and across Skyscanner platforms we are seeing some record-breaking numbers as we start the year. It’s clear that travellers are searching for inspiration and booking ahead for a mix of both leisure and VFR travel. Airlines and destinations will need to compete for this demand, and we are already seeing seat sales being put into the market to this effect.”
Third party data confirms Skyscanner’s strong start to the year. Between the end of 2023 and the start of 2024, Skyscanner outperformed the global flights market, recording +16% growth in visitors compared to the wider market’s +3% growth, demonstrating the value that travellers see in search and comparison during this peak booking period.**
*Based on redirects – a proxy for a booking when a traveller is redirected to a travel provider (airline or OTA) to book their flight. YoY growth is based on the comparison of redirect volumes between 02 /01/2023-08/01/2023 and 01/01/2024-07/01/2024.
**SimilarWeb data based on global flight sessions of tracked brands between 29th Dec -4th Jan. Analysis includes 272 tracked brands and 34 markets.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
