The jury is out on how 2003 bookings will shape up

London – 09 June 2003: In the latest Amadeus snap poll of more than 200 travel agents and industry professionals, respondents are almost equally divided about the recovery of long-haul travel from the UK during the remainder of 2003.

In response to the question “Due to the threat of terrorism and/or the impact of SARS, compared to long-haul bookings so far in 2003, do you expect bookings for the remainder of the year to: a) increase; b) decrease; c) stay the same?” many agents remain relatively upbeat.

A third of respondents (33 percent) perceive that long-haul travel bookings will increase over the remaining months of 2003 with an additional 33 percent stating that the booking levels will stay at approximately the same level. Considering the recent battering that long-haul travel has suffered, even an unchanged view could be deemed cautiously optimistic. Of the remaining 34 percent of respondents who are expecting bookings to decrease, many stated that they perceive the impact of these world events as having more of a bearing on the business rather than leisure market.

Amongst the agents who responded to the poll, many felt that the impact of SARS and the Iraqi War on long-haul booking volumes is likely to be more short than long-term. However, agents do perceive that leisure travellers will look to shift their choice of destination to areas of the world not widely affected by SARS or by political unrest.

One agent responding to the poll stated: “I think the leisure market will stay the same in 2003 but with different parts of the long haul-market being visited (areas not affected by SARS). The business market will continue to drop – but this is more due to economic reasons – more on yield though than traffic. SARS will have a far greater effect on the market than terrorism, particularly if insurance companies refuse to cover this.”

Reflecting on the poll results Rob Golledge, Senior Marketing Communications Executive at Amadeus UK commented, “Amadeus is pleased to be able to report increased booking activity – for both long-haul and short-haul travel – during the month of May. Most people seem to accept the fact that we live in a changing world and both SARS and terrorism are two problems that are not going to disappear overnight. The British travelling public seem to understand that the risks involved in travel are often equal to the risks of staying at home, despite the headline news. Like many of our colleagues in the industry, Amadeus is keen to promote the positive economic and social benefits of travel, which can prove a tonic to the stresses of daily life.”

Notes to editors

Amadeus Global Travel Distribution (MAD: AMS)

Amadeus is the leading global distribution system (GDS) and technology provider, serving the marketing, sales and distribution needs of the world’s travel and tourism industries.

Its comprehensive GDS data processing centre serves 63,940 travel agency locations and more than 9,900 airline sales offices, which together total more than 272,980 points of sale located in over 200 markets worldwide.

Through the Amadeus GDS, travel agencies and airline offices are able to make bookings with 466 airlines, representing more than 95 per cent of the world’s scheduled airline seats. The system also provides access to 62,520 hotels, 47 car rental companies serving some 24,760 locations, and other provider groups including: ferry; rail; cruise; insurance and tour operators.

Amadeus is a leading application service provider (ASP) to the airline industry.

134 airlines use the Amadeus Sales System in their offices to provide passengers with superior and seamless service at optimal cost.

Amadeus’s new generation of Passenger Service Systems, which include all IT systems associated with inventory management and departure control, will be implemented by British Airways, Qantas and Finnair.

e-Travel, Amadeus’s e-commerce business unit, is global leader in online travel technology and corporate travel management solutions. It powers the Web pages of 887 travel agencies, 255 corporate sites, 18 hotel sites and 139 web sites serving 50 airlines.

Amadeus is headquartered in Madrid, Spain and quoted on the Madrid, Paris and Frankfurt stock exchanges. For the year ended 31 December 2002, the company reported revenues of EUR 1856m and net income of EUR 148.6m. The Amadeus data centre is in Erding (near Munich), Germany and its principal development offices are located in Sophia Antipolis (near Nice), France. The company has some 5,200 employees worldwide.

More information about Amadeus is available at: www.amadeus.com or www.amadeusuk.com

For further information please contact:

Amadeus UK
Rob Golledge
T: 0870 990 7851
F: 0870 990 9299
E: [email protected]
W: www.amadeusuk.com

Amadeus Press Bridget Agnew / Anya Velzeboer
Financial Dynamics
T: 020 7269 7219/7174
F: 020 7831 8438
E: [email protected]