- Tickets 18 per cent cheaper in January
- Heathrow most expensive UK departure point, Edinburgh cheapest
- Perth most cost-effective airport to fly into
- Those aged 45-54 are more adventurous than the 25-34s
- Doha & Abu Dhabi are the cheapest connections
- Students most likely to book a flight to Aus on a Monday
- Incredible Australia Day offers available from just £49
To celebrate Australia Day, Flight Centre, the world’s number one travel agent to Australia, has released findings from its second annual Australia Travel Trends Report.* Taking insight from search and bookings data from Flight Centre and its youth travel booking site StudentUniverse, the report is filled with the latest stats, trends and predictions around travel to Australia.
Alison Zacher, Retail MD at Flight Centre UK, said: “We’re excited to share our 2018 Australia Travel Trends Report filled with data and insights around who is travelling Down Under as well as the busiest and cheapest times to travel. Despite uncertainties about what 2017 held for the travel industry following Brexit and the weakening pound, it was a strong year for Australia and the outlook for 2018 is similarly positive.”
The report, which can be downloaded here, includes findings such as:
January is Cheapest and Most Popular Month to Travel
January is the most popular time to visit Australia, followed by September and August, all seeing a significant year-on-year increase in passengers (22 per cent, 17 per cent and 21 per cent respectively). It’s also the cheapest time of the year to book with tickets, on average, 18 per cent cheaper than any other month of the year.
Edinburgh is Cheapest Departure Point, London Most Expensive
Edinburgh still holds the crown for the cheapest UK departure point and is a huge 25 per cent cheaper than Heathrow, which has taken over from Glasgow as the most expensive.
Manchester Airport Sees Biggest Increase in Flights to Australia
There have been significant year-on-year increases in departures from Manchester Airport (17 per cent), Edinburgh (11 per cent) and London (seven per cent).
Flying to Perth is Seven Per Cent Cheaper than Sydney
Perth is the most cost-effective airport for Brits to fly to with tickets costing on average £369 less than those for Sydney, the most expensive destination.
Favourite Hotspots
The most popular Australian destinations to fly to have remained consistent over the last five years with Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth making up around 90 per cent of all tickets sold. As expected, Sydney takes the lead with 40 per cent of all tickets sold followed by Melbourne, which receives 22 per cent of all passengers entering the country.
John and Susan Most Likely to Visit Australia
The most popular male and female names for booking trips to Australia are John and Susan, with David and Sarah taking second place.
Those Aged 45-54 are More Adventurous than the 25-34s
Flight Centre research revealed that almost one sixth (13 per cent) of travellers re-visit the same place on holiday every year with the 25–34 age range being the worst culprits. Nearly one in five (19 per cent) travellers in this age bracket never change their mind on their annual holiday location. Those in the 45–54 age bracket are most likely to mix it up with nine out of 10 people choosing somewhere new each year.
Romford Sold Most Holidays to Australia in 2017
Flight Centre’s Romford branch was the company’s top performing individual store last year – selling 3 per cent more flights and holidays to Australia than any of its other stores.
The report also includes the following insights around youth travel trends sourced by Flight Centre-owned StudentUniverse – the world’s leading travel booking site for students and youth:
Strewth! Students Love Australia
Last year, StudentUniverse saw a 366 per cent year-on-year increase in bookings to Australia. Plus, once they’ve travelled Down Under, it seems young travellers can’t get enough: the company reported a 267 per cent year-on-year increase in repeat bookings to Oz in 2017.
Travel in January Or February for the Cheapest Student Flights…
Half (54 per cent) of the tickets sold to Australia by StudentUniverse are one-way. For those intrepid adventurers, the best time to travel is the last week of January when the cheapest average one-way flights are available (£483) while the cheapest average return flights (£749) departed during the first week of February.
Fly into Melbourne for the Best Deals
According to StudentUniverse’s average cost for a return flight in 2017, Melbourne is the cheapest airport to fly into (£669) followed by Sydney (£676), Brisbane (£717) and Perth (£751). The average cost of a one-way flight to Australia in 2017 (£532) was 9.7 per cent cheaper than in 2016.
Doha & Abu Dhabi are the Cheapest Connections
According to StudentUniverse, the cheapest one-way route is when connecting via Doha, followed by stopovers in Abu Dhabi and Guangzhou. For return flights, Abu Dhabi is the cheapest connection, followed by Doha and Guangzhou.
Mobile Devices Becoming More Popular for Bookings
Mobile searches have always been popular (47 per cent of Australia searches in 2017 were via a mobile device, including the “Flights by StudentUniverse” app) but, in 2017, there was a 560 per cent year-on-year increase in bookings made via mobile.
Nearly Half of Bookings Made Four Months in Advance
Nearly half of young travellers (41 per cent) search for their trip to Australia more than 120 days prior to departure and nearly one in three (28 per cent) book this far in advance, followed by one in five (20 per cent) who book 31-60 days in advance.
Two Week Walkabout
Many young travellers are wise to the fact a short break is a great way to take in part of the country. The most popular length of stay (for return flights) is 15-21 days.
Bookings Soar on Monday 14th May
According to StudentUniverse, the most popular day of the week to book a flight to Australia is a Monday and the 3rd week of May is the most popular time of year to book. According to this, the most popular booking day in 2018 could be Monday 14th May.
Australia Travel Predictions: 2018 and beyond
- More freedom to travel: Flight Centre predicts a rise in campervan holidays, which offer travellers more freedom and flexibility to explore the country on an exhilarating road-trip, stopping off where they like for as long as they like.
- Group travel: Escorted tours are also becoming increasingly popular because of the unique insight and knowledge you can gain from a local tour guide. Better yet, there are now more tour styles than ever: rail tours, walking tours, small ship cruising and more.
- Up and coming Tasmania: As travellers become increasingly informed, we expect to see them continuing to seek new destinations as well as the usual tourist hotspots. Tasmania is especially becoming popular for third and fourth time visitors to Australia who have already explored some of the other big attractions.
Australia Day Holiday Offer – £49 deal
To celebrate Australia Day, Flight Centre has partnered with Etihad and Virgin Australia to offer three lucky couples the chance to snap up a holiday to Australia for only £49pp.
To be in with a chance of booking this incredible holiday deal, which includes return flights, transfers, one-night hotel and seven days in a campervan, customers need to call Flight Centre’s Cheltenham store (01242 395009) at midday on Friday 26th January 2018. Full terms and conditions apply, see https://www.flightcentre.co.uk/legal/booking-conditions for further details.
Australia Day Holiday offer – £999 deal
Fear not, for those who were not lucky enough to snap up a £49 holiday to Australia, Flight Centre has slashed the price of the trip for everyone and will be offering this same holiday for only £999pp until the end of the month (31st January 2018). Customers can travel from London, Manchester or Edinburgh to Melbourne, Perth and Brisbane for £999 (and Sydney for £1099). The deal is available for trips during May, June and September 2018. (Supplements may apply for other times of the year).
To book the holiday at £999, call Flight Centre on 0800 587 0058. Full terms and conditions apply, see https://www.flightcentre.co.uk/legal/booking-conditions for further details.
Notes to Editors:
* To download the full report, visit: https://www.dropbox.com/s/gw7k8xq6zt4pjdx/FL-AustraliaReport-2018v1.2.3.pdf?dl=0.
**Survey of 2,002 UK adults conducted by 4Media Relations on behalf of the Flight Centre Travel Group in January 2018.
-Ends-
For further press information, please contact:
Melissa Hobson/Natalie Garland/James Brooke
Rooster PR
T: +44 (0)20 3440 8927
E: [email protected]
About the Flight Centre Travel Group (FCTG)
The Flight Centre Travel Group (fctgl.com) is one of the world’s largest travel companies with over 18,000 staff and 2500 stores across its leisure, corporate and wholesale businesses. The company’s turnover in 2014/2015 financial year was £9 billion. After starting with one shop 30 years ago, FCTG has enjoyed remarkable growth and is one of the top 100 publicly listed companies on the Australian Securities Exchange.
All specialist brands under the FCTG Corporate banner offer 24/7 support and the benefits of a blended offline/online solution; global negotiation strength and unique and superior business travel products.
About Flight Centre
The team at Flight Centre are experts when it comes to travel and are committed to providing customers with a great experience. The company’s success comes down to its people, experienced Travel Experts who are passionate about finding their customers the holiday they want, for the price they want.
Since establishing the first Flight Centre store in 1995, the business has grown its team of Travel Experts to include over 80 stores within the United Kingdom, with new stores opening regularly. Worldwide, Flight Centre has an amazing 2,500 stores across the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, United States, Canada and more, making Flight Centre one of the largest and most successful independent travel retailers in the world. With its global reach and close relationships with the world’s best travel providers, the company is able to provide competitive travel deals.
The Flight Centre team can organise anything from flights and hotels, car hire, tours, travel insurance, visas and more to tailor make the perfect holiday. They also have dedicated First and Business Class flight teams and Business Travel teams to help with any specialised travel needs.
For more information go to www.flightcentre.co.uk, www.facebook.com/FlightCentreUK, www.twitter.com/flightcentre_UK or www.instagram.com/flightcentreuk.
About StudentUniverse
StudentUniverse is the world’s leading travel booking site for students and youth. Through negotiations with a network of global partners, StudentUniverse offers discounted pricing and terms on flights, hotels and tours. Its Travel Services division also handles complex itineraries, custom designed gap year experiences and group travel requests. StudentUniverse also operates Journeys are Made @ GapYear.com, the world’s largest gap year inspiration travel platform.
StudentUniverse launched in the UK in 2013 and was acquired by Flight Centre Travel Group in 2015. StudentUniverse is headquartered in Boston with offices in London, Toronto, New York and the Philippines. StudentUniverse believes that travel is essential to a modern education. Millions of students use the service every year.
For more information go to www.studentuniverse.co.uk, www.facebook.com/StudentUniverseUK, www.twitter.com/studentu_uk or www.instagram.com/studentuniverseuk.
