Doha, Qatar: Travel agencies have signalled that outbound travel has surged rapidly during Eid and Summer seasons. Industry professionals highlight that travel demand has increased in the second quarter post-Ramadan and Eid holidays.
Speaking to The Peninsula Rehan Ali Sayed, Chief Executive Officer at Tawfeeq Travel Group, said: “In the current quarter there has been a surge in bookings and as we approach summer, the travel demand has been booming. Last year due to FIFA many families and individuals abstained from travelling hence everyone is looking forward to the upcoming summer holidays”.
He indicated that travel agencies have yet again reached their busiest time of the year since the last week of May.
“Sales is booming since the end of May with more and more passengers firming up their plan to travel. Since it is school holidays, hence the demand for outbound is quite high, especially for people going back to their home countries,” Sayed said.
During the first two quarters of 2023, outward-bound travel lowered due to the ticket prices.
He noted that “Outbound has been a bit of slack post-FIFA, one of the main reasons has been soaring airline fares however with summer we can see the surge of travel bouncing back and we look forward to a busy summer season.”
Qatar’s leisure industry plays a significant role in stabilising the country’s economy as the official remarked, “Travel as a vertical itself contributes heavily to the economic growth of any country so by heavy investments into retail outlets and state of the art offices our contribution is substantial to the growth of Qatar economy.”
In addition to offering bountiful services for expats and residents in Qatar to visit their home country, travel agencies have also devised packages for individuals desiring to spend vacations in leisurely cities.
Lourdes Dolor, Marketing Manager at Darwish Travels shared some of the most preferred tourist attractions for citizens and residents.
She said that “Dubai, KSA, London, Spain, and France remain top preferred destinations for Qataris; while Georgia, Seychelles, Maldives, Turkey, UAE, and the Netherlands are quite popular with expats.
Travel time and visa-on-arrival regulations are also important factors that affect the choices, especially for expat travellers.”
She remarked that the agency has commenced several packages for the holiday season.
Dolor said that “For this year, we have launched outbound tour packages to various destinations like Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Istanbul, etc that only costs QR2,023,”
“This rate is for two adults and it already includes hotel accommodation, airport transfers, and two-day tours that would enable them to explore these cities. Middle Eastern cruise packages have also started to become quite popular and we expect more and more bookings for this product within the year,” she added.
According to Air Transport Statistics released recently, last month witnessed a vital increase in air passengers by 22.2 percent and aircraft movement surged by 16.6 percent compared to May 2022.
Qatar Aviation Authority in its recent tweet indicates that the resilient momentum is poised to augment in the coming months.
