holiday sales drop over winter

THERE was a drop in the overall number of holiday sales this winter, although the average passenger spent more on going away, according to figures from the Civil Aviation Authority.

The number of holidays booked through operators and airlines holding ATOLs this winter dropped by 2%, down from 10.4 million passengers in October 2000 to March 2001 to 10.2 million for the same period in the 2001/2 season.

However, operators were able to increase prices for holidays by an average of 2.9% in the winter season. The average price paid per person rose from £456 to £470, year on year.

CAA director of consumer protection Helen Simpson said: “We were surprised at how small the drop in bookings was, given the circumstances.

“These figures came straight after a drop in confidence following September 11.

“The economic situation was not good so, in context, it is quite a small reduction and less serious than many people expected.

“Average price increases were ahead of the rate of inflation. This shows it wasn’t just moving distressed stock.”

The full-year picture is promising, with a 2.4% volume increase in the year to March 2002, when 29 million people bought flights and air holidays from licensed UK travel companies, creating a turnover of £13.1 billion.

TUI UK saw the number of passengers it carried in the 12 months to March 2002 drop by 2%, from 3,985,480 last year to 3,925,198.

During the same period, the MyTravel Group saw a 4% increase in passenger numbers.