TUI, the world’s largest travel group, characterizes the demand for autumn vacation bookings as “unprecedented.” The demand includes two islands of Greece, which are among the top destinations for September.
TUI responds to record demand with extended travel seasons
Precisely because of the looming fall demand in Greece by tourists, TUI, the largest European tourism organization, states that it will extend the end of this season.
Additional “packages” to top Mediterranean destinations including Crete, Rhodes, and Kos will be provided for the autumn season.
New flight options for popular autumn getaways: Greece and Turkey
According to the head of TUI Germany, Stefan Baumert, the group is seeing an increase in demand for beach destinations in the Mediterranean this year. Travelers aim for autumn escapes, while at the same time, parallel to demand, TUI itself is planning on taking advantage of the bankruptcy of the tourist agency FTI.
The FTI bankruptcy also affected Greece at the beginning of the summer. Consequently, TUI is now offering significant discounts to attract additional customers.
TUI secured contingents and created 75,000 additional vacation spots for autumn vacation bookings. Furthermore, the group has added 65 extra flights and 12,300 new seats to extend the season past the traditional summer season. In Crete, the season will last until November 23rd this year with 39 extra flights.
In terms of destinations with the greatest demand for autumn, Turkey is at the forefront. The fact that Turkey is more affordable of course plays a role. According to Baumert, Antalya is currently the top destination for autumn holidays, with the Turkish Riviera surpassing Mallorca.
Top autumn destinations: Greece, Turkey, and most popular locations
After Antalya and Mallorca, Crete and Kos follow in third and fourth place on the list of most popular destinations. At the same time, Red Sea destinations such as Xurgada and Marsa Alam in Egypt are also in high demand.
The Turkish Riviera is likewise quite attractive for family vacations this autumn due to high temperatures and high quality. Rhodes is at the top of autumn destinations along with Fuerteventura in Spain, Faro in Portugal, and Gran Canaria in Spain.
Among long-haul destinations, the US remains the top destination for autumn based on demand received by TUI, followed by the UAE, Thailand, Maldives, and Mauritius. When it comes to road trips, Germany leads, followed by Austria, Italy, Poland, and the Czech Republic.
Due to the high demand, TUI is extending the season for certain destinations into late autumn, and tourists can generally expect to see additional flights and seats.
