As we head towards the festive season, hoteliers are preparing for increased demand as people look to travel over Christmas and New Year’s Eve. Global technology provider Amadeus, with its forward-looking business intelligence data, is seeing a peak in demand over the Christmas and New Year period across major markets around the world.
Amadeus’ Demand360+ data (as of November 27) shows that global hotel occupancy for the weeks of Christmas and New Year’s is already at 23 percent. This is up 10 percent from the same time last year. Globally, occupancy levels this festive season are trending ahead of 2022, reflecting a return of confidence in travel and a desire for warmer climates in some of the leading destinations.
According to hotel occupancy, the top destinations globally are:
- Los Cabos, Mexico (77 percent)
- Cape Town, South Africa (71 percent)
- Phuket, Thailand (69 percent)
- Cancun, Mexico (69 percent)
- Honolulu, Hawaii (64 percent)
- Tokyo, Japan (61 percent)
- The Maldives (59 percent)
- Sydney, Australia (58 percent)
- Taipei, Taiwan (58 percent)
- Kahului, Hawaii (57 percent)
This festive season it seems that travelers are prioritizing sun, nature, gastronomy and culture, contributing to high occupancy levels across Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Latin America (LATAM). Compared to last year, APAC is trending 8 percent higher, Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) 7 percent, LATAM 4 percent and North America (NORAM) is on par with 2022. Los Cabos—the top market—has seen a 16 percent increase in bookings since 2022.
The data also reveals travelers are still booking accommodation close to their intended travel dates, as 56 percent of travelers worldwide are making hotel reservations within a week of their trip—up 4 percent on 2022. This presents hoteliers with an opportunity to make the most of last-minute demand.
The data is based on insight from Amadeus’ Demand360+ business intelligence as of November 27 for the weeks of Christmas and New Year’s (December 24, 2023 to January 6, 2024).
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