HONG KONG, 27 August 2021: Trip.com Group, a leading global travel service provider, has released data showing increased search volumes for travel to Europe, prompting the group to expand hotel partnerships.
Trip.com Group search data from its Ctrip platform reveals Chinese travellers are showing increasing interest in travel to Europe, with search volumes for European flights and hotels spiking this summer.
Compared with 2021 pre-summer (1 January to 20 June) searches, Ctrip search volume for European flights grew by over 150% in July and continue to rise in August, peaking on 12 August over 320% higher than the pre-summer volume.
Similarly, Ctrip user searches for European hotels have risen sharply too. In August alone, searches for European hotels rose by an average of 80% compared to the January to June average, with the highest search volume recorded on 9 August up almost 120% on 2021 pre-summer levels.
In Europe, cross-border travel is increasingly possible under the EU Digital Covid Certificate Travel Passport scheme and the UK’s traffic light system. Search and booking volumes on Trip.com, the travel Group’s global online travel agency platform, have grown in line with the opening up of travel. Hotel bookings made by Trip.com UK users in the second quarter of 2021 saw 173% year-on-year growth, and those made by Trip.com France and Germany users rose by 52% and 64%, respectively.
The UK, France and Germany ranked among the top 10 hotel destinations by Trip.com global booking volume during the same period, and flight bookings made by Trip.com UK, France and Germany users in June rose by over 200% in each market year-on-year.
“The global travel recovery is underway, and we are strengthening our partnerships in local markets to ensure we are best positioned to support their business’s recovery and growth along with the return of domestic and international travel flows,” said Trip.com Group CEO Jane Sun.
