Travel franchises rejoice as tourism reaches pre-covid levels

The UN Tourism’s latest report indicates international travel has now made a full recover following pandemic restrictions

Consumers are now travelling internationally as much as they did before COVID-19, according to new research.

The UN Tourism’s World Tourism Barometer found that international travel had surpassed 2019 levels by 2% - with UK consumers among this demographic.

Spain is currently the top destination for British holidaymakers, with 1.5 million people visiting the country throughout April 2024 – an 8.5% increase in comparison to the year before.

Italy has been outlined as the second most popular destination, while Greece is third, according to YouGov’s UK Travel Trends 2024 report.

Tourists have also shown an appetite for travelling further afield, with the Caribbean seeing a big rise in demand. The UN Tourism report found the island of Curaçao had experienced a 45% increase in visitors between January and March 2024.

Elsewhere, Tanzania had similarly seen a dramatic increase of 53% in tourism during the same time period.

Now, travel franchises are hopeful that an increase in demand will have a knock-on effect on sales.

Some 57% of British consumers are expecting to take two to four trips this year, according to YouGov. While, NatWest’s latest research found 17.3% will spend more on their holidays this year, than they did last year.

Paul Harrison, co-founder at The Travel Franchise has noticed these statistics come to fruition, with some franchisees totalling £3 million in bookings in two years.

“Demand for travel and for travel agents is on an all-time high,” said Harrison.

“As the UK’s number one home working travel agency for people new to travel and rated the 10th best franchise in Great Britain, The Travel Franchise is the perfect choice for anyone who has a passion for travel and customer service. 

“The future is bright and with the UK forecasting a summer of rain, business is only going to continue this upward trajectory.”