Travel industry statistics showed a surge in passenger demand during April and a prediction of increases in online booking throughout the summer. Studies revealed the top airlines by on-time performance and Europe’s high ranking clean beaches and rivers.
Report: Europe's Beaches & Rivers Rank High for Cleanliness
The annual bathing water quality report from the European Environment Agency (EEA) tracks the water quality at 22,000 bathing sites across the EU, Switzerland and, for the first time, Albania. 95 percent of bathing sites met the minimum requirements, while 83 percent met the "excellent" level.
The proportion of sites passing the minimum requirements in 2013 was roughly the same as 2012. However, the proportion of 'excellent' sites increased from 79 percent in 2012 to 83 percent in 2013. At coastal beaches, water quality was slightly better, with 85 percent of sites classified as excellent. All coastal beaches in Slovenia and Cyprus were classified as excellent.
Inland, bathing water quality seems to have been slightly lower than the average. Luxembourg was the only country to receive 'excellent' for all its inland bathing sites, with Denmark close behind with 94 percent rated excellent. Germany achieved this top rating at 92 percent of almost 2,000 inland bathing sites.
Top Airlines by On-Time Performance
The Department of Transportation (DOT) recently released statistics for airline on-time performance in March as part of its Air Travel Consumer Report. Hawaiian Airlines lead in on-time performance, with 91.6 percent of arrivals on time.
Passenger Demand Accelerates in April
Global passenger traffic results for April showed a healthy increase in demand with total revenue passenger kilometers (RPKs) up 7.5 percent compared to April 2013, an improvement over March growth of 2.9 percent, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) reports.
“April’s demand growth was a pleasant surprise in the face of the moderating trend of recent months but it is not clear whether the acceleration in demand is sustainable in view of global economic trends including slower growth in China,” said Tony Tyler, IATA’s director general and CEO.
Online Travel Bookings Predicted to Surge This Summer
According to Adobe Digital Index’s (ADI) “Travel 2014 Report", there is a huge increase in the number of bookings through mobile devices. Smartphone bookings are up a 121 percent since January 2013, bookings via gaming consoles are up 60 percent, and tablet bookings are up 48 percent, both in the same period. However PC still has the largest share of bookings, at 86 percent.
“Marketers—now talking more broadly and not just about the travel industry—can also take advantage of the fact that the upcoming summer months are more mobile,” said Tamara Gaffney, principal analyst at ADI. “They could utilize the newer capabilities—like Facebook's new mobile advertising network—to reach out to people who are on the go.”
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