Germany Holiday Planning and Booking Market Report 2024
€ 2,600 (Excl.Tax)
Report Summary
While younger generations remain most engaged in travelling, Younger Millennial travellers have grown from 88% planning a main holiday in February 2022 to 95% in June 24. As they transition into parenthood, travel brands can explore new family travel trends like camping or wellness trips to appeal to them.
Slowing inflation gives affluent Germans more money to spend on luxurious trips and frequent holidays. Even less-affluent Germans are increasingly planning to travel despite limited holiday budgets due to ongoing tough economic times, pushing travel brands to continue to engage them with affordable choices.
Younger generations have adjusted to holiday price rises in recent years by focusing on their main holiday. With slower price hikes, they are shifting to multiple, cheaper trips. In fact, 28% of Gen Z and 34% of Younger Millennial travellers expect to spend less on their main holiday in the 12 months after June 2024. Brands can benefit by encouraging frequent travel and exploration of various destinations.
With AI on the rise, travel brands need to prepare for a growing demand for personalised AI support, while maintaining diverse booking channels to cater to different traveller segments. Perfection seekers will eagerly adopt smartphone AI tools, traditionalists will need ongoing support from travel agencies, and explorers will continue to handle detailed online planning themselves.
This report looks at the following areas:
- The short-, medium- and long-term impact of inflation on holiday planning and booking.
- Participation in main holidays and main holiday spending, with a focus on most engaged demographics, such as younger generations and families.
- Traveller typology based on attitudes towards holiday planning and booking.
- Germans’ preferred main holiday destinations and main holiday types, exploring an increasing demand in domestic holidays.
- Planning and booking responsibilities, and how brands can help consumers plan holidays together.
- Preferred holiday booking methods and the influence of AI on holiday planning and booking.
With easing inflation, brands can benefit from rising traveller numbers by catering to different traveller segments. Traditionalists need human support, while Perfection Seekers are keen on using AI tools.
Silvia Hondt, Senior Research Analyst
Table of Contents
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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
- The five-year outlook for holidays
- Market context
- Inflation dynamics influence German travel behaviours
- Sustainability as a driving force in the travel market
- AI as a game-changer
- Mintel predicts
- Market size & forecast
- Rising prices continue to fuel value growth
- Ongoing economic recovery is expected to contribute to volume growth
- Opportunities
- Unlock family travel potential among Younger Millennials
- Elevate younger generations’ interest in domestic holidays
- Foster volume growth
- Cater to different traveller segments to embrace the future of holiday booking
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MARKET DRIVERS
- The German economy
- 2024 remains challenging
- Graph 1: key economic data, in real terms, 2019-25
- The inflation rate is bouncing back to more conventional levels
- Inflation is still the key factor affecting consumers’ finances…
- …confidence and expenditure
- Graph 2: financial confidence index, 2022-24
- The impact of the economy on the holiday market
- Increasing number of travellers
- Graph 3: holiday booked in the last three months, 2023-24
- Price rises for international travel  slowed down…
- Graph 4: consumer price index, by travel categories, 2023-24
- …but Germans still perceive rising holiday prices
- Graph 5: higher prices for holidays faced in the last two months, 2023-24
- The financial gap among Germans is reflected in planned holiday spending
- Graph 6: expected changes in holiday spending habits in 2024 compared to 2023, by financial situation, 2024
- FTI insolvency reflects market struggles in times of multiple crises
- Regulations
- Rapid growth of short-term rentals elicit stricter regulations
- Revised Package Travel Directive is challenging travel agents
- Socio-ecological issues
- Overtourism forces travel brands to promote alternatives to popular destinations
- Eco-friendliness is an ongoing market driver
- Artificial Intelligence
- AI is on the rise…
- Graph 7: generative AI use cases in the last three months, 2024
- …but a human touch is needed
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WHAT CONSUMERS WANT AND WHY
- Holiday participation and spending
- Engage consumers with less-healthy finances
- Adapt to the changing travelling behaviour of Younger Millennials
- Tap into growing demand for family holidays
- Decrease in main holiday spending
- Younger generations are most likely to reduce main holiday spending…
- Graph 8: changes in main holiday spending, by generation, 2024
- …but travel brands can engage them more often
- Traveller typology
- German holiday planner and booker typology
- Group 1: Traditionalists
- Graph 9: types of holiday planners and bookers, by generations, 2024
- Offer support to Traditionalists
- Group 2: Convenience and Bargain Hunters
- Graph 10: types of holiday planners and bookers, by resident parent of children aged under 16, 2024
- Demonstrate value for money to Convenience and Bargain Hunters
- Group 3: The Explorers
- Graph 11: types of holiday planners and bookers, by generations, 2024
- Offer detailed information to Explorers
- Group 4: Perfection Seekers
- Graph 12: types of holiday planners and bookers, by generations, 2024
- Offer a shortcut to customised holidays for Perfection Seekers
- Main holiday destination and main holiday type
- Domestic tourism is gaining momentum
- Graph 13: main holiday destination in the next 12 months, by generation, 2024
- Leverage younger generations’ interest in domestic destinations…
- …by touching up your image…
- …and elevating event travel
- Target Gen Z with wellness holidays abroad
- Top choice: beach resort holidays and city breaks
- Graph 14: type of main holiday, 2022
- Graph 15: type of main holiday, 2024**
- Tap into group holiday offers…
- …inspired by G Adventure promoting group family holidays pre-pandemic
- Help Perfection Seekers combine holiday types
- Planning and booking responsibilities
- Support consumers to plan their holidays together
- Graph 16: holiday planning and booking responsibilities, 2024
- Help fathers include family members in the decision process
- Holiday booking method
- Leverage older generations’ flexibility…
- Graph 17: booked main holiday for the next 12 months, by generation, 2024
- …and display them in your campaigns
- Online booking is dominating the market
- Focus on improving smartphone booking…
- …and promote smartphone booking as a one-stop shop to Perfection Seekers
- Help Explorers dive into detailed holiday preparation online
- In-person agencies: position yourself as a helping hand in the holiday offer jungle…
- …and learn from retailers to turn in-person travel stores into experiential outlets
- Use of Artificial Intelligence for holiday planning and booking
- Tap into AI to target younger generations as early adopters
- Leverage AI to speed up the planning and booking process…
- …and be inspired by Neural Voice
- AI as a game-changer for holiday planning and booking
- Graph 18: use cases for AI in holiday planning and booking, 2024
- Show travellers how using AI can save money
- Help engaged travellers to plan travel routes…
- …and families to verify family-friendliness
- Attitudes towards holiday planning and booking
- Help travellers to consider factors beyond cost
- Graph 19: attitudes towards holiday planning and booking – NET, 2024
- Package versus independent holidays – provide the best of both worlds
- Broaden the scope of a destination
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LAUNCH ACTIVITY AND INNOVATION
- AI as an aid to counteract labour shortage
- OpenAI’s latest launch provides a glimpse into the future of generative AI
- Airbnb takes holiday experiences to the next level…
- …by launching ‘Icons’
- Copenhagen rewards eco-friendly behaviour
- Advertising and marketing activity
- Check 24 emphasises cheap holiday deals
- Airbnb emphasises families’ needs
- Adventure as a key element in TUI’s promotion
- Booking.com becomes a one-stop-shop
- Lufthansa inspires: ‘every story starts with a yes’
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MARKET SHARE
- Inflation and COVID-19 fuelled demand for affordable holidays abroad
- Graph 20: most popular holiday destinations, by volume share of longer trips, 2019-23*
- Southern Germany as number-one domestic destination
- Graph 21: most popular domestic destinations, by volume share of longer trips*, 2019-23
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MARKET SIZE, SEgmentation AND FORECAST
- Market value growth is driven by rising prices
- Germans reduced their number of trips…
- …but took longer main holidays
- Graph 22: main holiday length, 1998-2023
- Record market value amid volume decline
- Germany fatigue: travellers focused on holidays abroad
- Rising prices continue to fuel value growth
- Ongoing economic recovery is expected to contribute to volume growth
- Increasing number of travellers and continous high prices will drive short-term growth
- Investments will contribute to value growth mid-term
- AI will change holiday planning and booking long term
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APPENDIX
- Appendix – products covered, abbreviations, consumer research methodology and language usage
- Products covered in this Report
- Abbreviations
- Consumer research methodology
- A note on language
- Appendix – market size and central forecast methodology
- Forecast methodology
- Forecast methodology – fan chart
- Market size – value
- Market size – volume
- Market forecast and prediction intervals – value
- Market forecast and prediction intervals – volume
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