Later booking curve continuing, Tui confirms

Tui booked revenue in the UK for this summer is down by 4% compared to this time last year.

 

The UK performance is in contrast to Germany, which has seen revenue ahead by 2% year on year.

 

The disclosure came as Tui Group reported total bookings of 4.8 million for the summer with about one third of the season sold.

 

Total booked revenue is down by 2% “in what remains a competitive market environment, with the later booking curve continuing,” Europe’s largest tour operating group reported.

 

“Bookings in recent weeks have been impacted by the colder European weather,” the company added.

 

Current trading “reflects our strategy of reducing own-risk capacity while prioritising utilisation of our reduced capacity and delivering growth through dymanic products and app sales”.

 

Key destinations for the summer are Greece, the Balearic islands and Turkey, with Egypt registering “strong demand” as it continues to grow in popularity as a summer destination, according to Tui.

 

Booked revenue from the UK for this winter is “stable” and down 1% in Germany.

 

"Booking momentum has been slower in recent weeks due to the wintery weather across our source markers,” the group said.   

 

The details emerged as the company delivered first quarter results for the current financial year, showing group revenue almost constant year on year at €4.9 billion in an “unchanged competitive and economically challenging Europen market environment”.

 

Underlying group profit (EBIT) rose to €77.1 million from €50.9 million in the same period a year earlier thanks to strong performances by the group’s holiday experiences  - including hotels and resorts, cruises and Tui Musement - and markets & airline division.

 

Total holidaymaker numbers rose by 2.2% year on year to 7.1 million, with those opting for dynamically packaged trips up by 8%.  

 

Tui hailed the reversal of a trend of typically seasonally negative winter quarter results for the travel industry and was able to improve on last year’s positive first quarter result once again. 

 

Reflecting on the best start to a financial year, group chief executive Sebastian Ebel said: "The first quarter results meet our expectations and clearly demonstrate that we are achieving sustainable growth with our strategy.

 

“Holidays remain a priority. Our hotel and cruise businesses, as well as the tours and activities segment, continue to grow highly profitable.

 

"With a positive result in the first quarter, we have made a good start to financial year 2026, including strategic progress.

 

“We have accelerated our transformation in ‘markets and airline’ and are converting to a global marketplace for curated travel. We are growing globally and reducing seasonality.”

 

He noted that travel agencies remain important partners with many customers booking earlier and at “higher quality”.

 

He added: “That’s why this partnership is important for both sides,” pointing out that the group is nopening 50 branches alone in eastern Europe this year with the addition of Romania as a new source market.

 

“In summary, we can say Tui remains on a clear growth trajectory,” Ebel said. 

 

“We are pleased with our first‑quarter performance. Our integrated business model enables strong synergies between our two business areas: markets & airline - covering our tour operators and flight operations - and holiday experiences, which includes our hotels, cruises, and Tui Musement. 

 

“This will also be crucial for the rest of the year. Bookings for winter 2025-26 and summer 2026 meet our expectations, demand remains robust."

 

Chief financial officer Mathias Kiep said: "The vertical integration of our business model increases capacity utilisation and ensures attractive margins despite a challenging environment.

 

“With the best first quarter in our company history, we have created a solid foundation for a successful financial year 2026.

 

“In addition to operational improvements, we have also strengthened our financial profile and further reduced net debt.

 

“Tui is financially resilient and on track for sustainable underlying EBIT growth of approximately 7-10% CAGR [compound annual growth rate]."

 

Tui is due to publish results for the first half of its financial year on May 13.