Travel agencies have reported a mixed sales picture for the week following Queen Elizabeth II’s death but remain cautiously upbeat about trading for the rest of the year.
Most agents closed on Monday to allow staff to watch the state funeral and paused social media and marketing as a mark of respect.
Both high street and homeworking agents saw trading dip as the public’s focus switched to the monarch’s passing.
Althams Travel said sales slowed last week before recovering to “near 2019 levels” mid-week while Hays North West enjoyed a “good Saturday” after a “quieter week”.
Hays Travel North West managing director Don Bircham said: “We’re hoping we’ll recoup the sales from the bank holiday over the coming week.”
Personal Travel Consultants in Partnership with Blue Bay Travel reported a 30% drop in sales last week compared with the previous week since the Queen’s death but cautioned it was too early to tell if the downturn was a market shift.
Miles Morgan Travel chairman Miles Morgan expected the “inevitable softening” in sales to be temporary, adding: “Closing the shops was the right thing to do.”
Advantage Travel Partnership said the Queen’s passing had failed to dent overall sales. Bookings were 2% up on the previous week, and 50% up on the same week in 2019.
Agents also remained upbeat, if wary, about the months ahead despite announcements this week which are likely to have a significant effect on the outlook for travel businesses.
New business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg was due to announce details on Wednesday of the aid businesses can expect to help meet soaring energy bills this winter, part of the £150-billion energy-price support package unveiled on September 7.
On Friday, chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng will unveil a ‘mini-budget’ likely to include a reversal of the 1.25% increase in National Insurance in April and potentially other tax cuts to stimulate consumer spending.
However, on Thursday the Bank of England’s monetary policy committee is expected to raise interest rates by at least 0.5% to 2.25%, with rates expected to double by next year.
The Bank of England’s move will follow a rate rise by the US Federal Reserve on Wednesday, with a forecast 0.75% rise likely to boost the strength of the dollar and add to UK inflation pressures after the pound fell to a near 40-year low of $1.14 against the dollar last week.
Bircham admitted he was “cautious” about winter trading after an increased rate of cancellations in the last fortnight.
But Spear Travels chairman Peter Cookson said the miniple was heading for “an all-time record” September and maintained the government’s announcement of a £2,500 cap on energy bills may have allowed clients to “budget properly”.
“Holidays are even higher on their priority list,” he said.
Late bookings, for travel up to the end of January, were 75% of Spear’s new business. Around half of Advantage’s bookings last week were for departures within 12 weeks.
But Miles Morgan Travel reported booking patterns to be “quietly going back to normal” with late bookings “not as strong as this summer”.
Morgan forecast next January “might return to normal, with people booking for the summer” but cautioned price hikes were “the elephant in the room”.
“It sounds like a sales pitch from a travel agent but that’s why I’ll be doing all my own bookings for 2023 holidays in this calendar year,” he said.