Record booking year for UK travel management companies

Members of the Guild of Travel Management Companies made a record of almost 14 million bookings in 2007.

Although the rate of growth in airline bookings slowed in the fourth quarter – up four per cent against a six per cent increase in Q1 and eight per cent in both Q2 and Q3 – that was balanced against “massive” increases in hotel, rail and other transactions.

GTMC members booked 6.8 million flights (up six per cent), made nearly 3.2 million hotel reservations (up 20%), and booked 2.8 million rail tickets (up 23%) in the 12 months.

They also ordered nearly 400,000 rental cars (up 12%) and completed nearly 676,000 “other” transactions – providing travel insurance, passports and visa services, airport car parking and other ancillary travel arrangements – up by 27%.

Once again, the fact that growth in hotel bookings far outstrips that of flight bookings suggests that Britain’s business travellers are making better use of their time away from the office, the GMTC said.

Chief executive Philip Carlisle said:  “In the end, 2007 turned out to be even better than we had hoped.

“At the end of our third quarter, I was predicting that we would top 13 million transactions. In fact, that proved to be a conservative estimate, as we ended the year just 40,000 bookings shy of the 14 million mark.

“While the year-end figures are impressive, it is the fourth quarter totals that provide the real cause for celebration. 

“While our leaders were warning of a spectacular slump, Britain’s business community took no notice, and got on with the job of boosting the UK economy.”

He added: “An air booking counts as just one transaction, regardless of how many sectors are included in the ticket. It looks as though travellers are combining several destinations in one trip.

“Where surface transport is concerned, car rental continues to be an increasingly popular option, mostly on overseas trips. However, the 23% growth in rail bookings suggests that train companies are getting their act together, and perhaps our business travellers are looking for a ‘greener’ option.

“The increase in ‘other’ transactions is harder to call. Clearly there is considerable organic growth but, increasingly, guild members are also offering their clients a more comprehensive service, covering anything from pre-booked taxis to crisis management.

“That diversification has proved to be a resounding success, and we have no doubt that upward trend will continue.”

by Phil Davies

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