Agency leaders welcome improved year-on-year sales performance

By Andrew McQuarrie and Ella Sagar

Travel agency leaders have welcomed improved year-on-year performances as schools in England and Wales prepare to break up for summer next week.

The Advantage Travel Partnership reported an 8% increase in bookings in the past week compared with the same week in 2025, with the top-three departure months being September, July and August. 

John Sullivan, the consortium’s commercial director, said the lates market is “still strong”, noting it accounted for nearly 49% of all bookings in the past week – up by nearly 5% on the previous week.

The building momentum comes after Barclays card data showed spending with agents returned to growth in June after three consecutive months of year-on-year decline.

Protected Trust Services managing director Emma Collis said members achieved bookings growth of almost 17% year on year in the period from July 1 to July 14, despite the same level of enquiries. 

“More of those enquiries are converting into bookings,” she said, adding: “There is still a lates market, with late bookings slightly ahead of last year, although demand is mainly focused on July and September departures.  August is proving slower and appears harder to shift.”

Katharina Peck, commercial director of The Travel Network Group, described trading as “resilient”, citing 2% year-on-year revenue growth and a 12% uplift in average booking values despite “softer booking volumes”.

She added: “The late market remains significant, with 52% of bookings travelling within the next nine weeks and almost half departing in July and August.”

Inspire Europe chief executive Lisa Henning said the group’s agents are being encouraged to “change the perception that last-minute equals cheap”.

She cited two high-value late bookings secured on Saturday – one of them a £29,600 trip to Paphos departing in July, the other a £25,000 booking to the Maldives for September.

“It just shows you that the last-minute bookings don’t have to be low in value,” she added. 

InteleTravel UK and Ireland managing director Tricia Handley‑Hughes said bookings were up 27% on the same week last year, with revenue up 16%, while Designer Travel’s Darren Bien, the group’s head of sales and commercial, described trading as “buoyant”, particularly across European destinations, cruise and “affordable luxury”.

“We’ve seen more bookings but a lower average booking value, meaning we’re having to work smarter,” he added.

Cruise specialists presented a mixed picture on trends, with Cruise2 noting an increase in late bookings this year, while ROL Cruise pointed to increasing numbers booking “well ahead of the departure date”.

Agencies said the heatwave across western Europe had not led to concern from customers or any noticeable shifts in trends.