Travel experts give tips: Avoid spiraling prices on vacation: If you book quickly, you can still travel cheaply
Germany is in a spiral of price increases, which is also noticeable when traveling – for example through high-priced flight tickets. But if you travel on a flat rate, you can still avoid this. Travel experts explain why this is the case and which countries are currently cheaper than before Corona.
The increased energy prices caused by the war in Ukraine do not stop at the travel industry. Because this also increases the costs for hotels and airlines. For example, Lufthansa increased ticket prices weeks ago due to the high kerosene prices.
“The Lufthansa Group airlines will continue to monitor market and competitive behavior and make appropriate adjustments if necessary,” said a Lufthansa spokesman on request to FOCUS Online. It is therefore quite possible that ticket prices will continue to rise. Anyone who has not yet booked their flights for the summer holiday and is waiting longer will probably have to plan a significantly larger budget for it. This also applies to other airlines.
Contracts with hotels and airlines have long since been sealed
The situation is different with package holidays, which include flights as well as the hotel. Because the prices for package tours for this summer have been fixed for a long time: “The general price increases are not yet having an impact on our package tour offers, because the contracts with hotels and airlines for the summer have already been signed. So if you book now, you can still get a good offer for your favorite beach,” explains a Tui spokeswoman to FOCUS Online.
Currently there are still interesting offers for the following destinations:
Current price examples:
- Turkey, TUI Blue Sarigerme Park, 4.5 stars, a week with flight and all inclusive costs from 615 euros per person in a double room
- Mallorca, Hotel Riu Bravo, 4 stars, a week with flight and half board costs from 582 euros per person in a double room
- Corfu, TUI Blue Atlantica Nissaki Beach, 4 stars, a week with flight and all inclusive costs from 577 euros per person in a double room
- Egypt, TUI Magic Life Kalawi, 4 stars, a week with flight and all inclusive costs from 873 euros per person in a double room
No subsequent price adjustments due to kerosene costs
In most cases, however, customers who have already booked their package holiday before the rise in energy prices do not have to reckon with subsequent price increases due to higher kerosene costs. “Most tour operators in Germany cannot demand any subsequent travel price increases because they have deleted this clause from their general terms and conditions,” explains a spokesman for the German Travel Association (DRV).
The reason: In the opposite case, the organizers would have to refund the customer if the prices went down. “A travel price adjustment would be a huge bureaucratic effort that hardly any tour operator wants to do,” said the DRV.
Price increases for subsequently purchased contingents possible
However, the situation is different if the tour operator buys new hotel and flight contingents in the future due to high demand. “In this case, it may be that the travel prices are higher than the original ones,” said the DRV. Price increases can therefore not be ruled out for new contingents.
However, it cannot be said with certainty whether prices will rise for all destinations in the long term due to the current situation. “Prices could fall again in the longer term,” explains the DRV. In addition to the flight costs, this also depends on other factors such as the booking situation. That is why the travel association also advises booking as soon as possible in order to avoid potential increases in the price of package tours. Especially since the number of weekly bookings is currently significantly higher than in the same period in 2019.
Last-minute offers could be up to ten percent more expensive
The increased energy costs could have a negative impact on last-minute items in particular. “We will see fewer price concessions from hoteliers over the course of the season and therefore fewer bargains will be available,” says Tui, for example. “Price increases for last-minute offers of up to 10 percent will therefore not be uncommon,” the company continues.
Travel prices overall even lower than before the pandemic
Nevertheless, the overall travel prices are not higher than in previous years. According to information from DER Touristik, which owns the brands Dertour, Jahn-Reisen and Meiers Weltreisen, among other things, travel prices are lower today than they were before the pandemic: “So the summer of 2022 is cheaper than the pre-Corona summer of 2019”, explains Chief Product Officer Sven Schikarsky to FOCUS Online. For example, the following destinations are still 20 to 25 percent cheaper than in 2019:
“Holidaymakers now get significantly more vacation for their money this way,” confirms Schikarsky. Around five percent cheaper compared to summer 2021, on the other hand, are destinations in the
On the other hand, targets in the
- Indian Ocean
- in North Africa
- in the rest of Africa
- in the United Arab Emirates
- as well as in Oman
Further savings through early bird discounts
Anyone who decides to book quickly can also benefit from early booking discounts. The DER Touristik brands, for example, still have discounts for certain booking periods and for bookings made 90, 60, 45 or 30 days before the start of the trip. In most cases, these are percentage discounts or fixed amounts. The company also rules out a subsequent travel price increase for those who have already booked.
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Travel experts give tips – avoid spiraling prices on vacation: If you book quickly, you can still travel cheaply
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