A survey conducted by the Irish Travel Agents Association (ITAA) for the first half of 2023 shows that the majority of members have experienced an increase in bookings compared to the first quarter of 2019. Although the Credit Union Consumer Sentiment Index published earlier today reports a cautious Irish consumer, the ITAA survey shows that Irish travel agents are optimistic about business in 2023.
Of the members surveyed, optimism for business for the remainder of 2023 was positive. Each member responded that they had medium (56%) or high (44%) level of optimism.
In comparison to the same quarter in 2019, 16% of members reported increase in bookings by up to 10% with another 53% of members reporting booking increases of over 10%. 16% of members maintained the same level of bookings as the same quarter in 2019 and the remainder had a decrease in bookings.
Top destination countries included Spain, Portugal, France and Italy. Popular destinations included the Algarve, Canary Islands and Costa del Sol.
For corporate bookings, in comparison to the same period in 2019, 55% of agencies’ level of corporate bookings remained the same, 31% saw an increase and 14% saw a decline.
In total, 42% of agents attributed 60-80% of business to repeat customers. See table below.
| Number of Respondents | Percentage of business attributed to repeat customers |
| 3% | 0-20% |
| 16% | 20-40% |
| 26% | 40-60% |
| 42% | 60-80% |
| 13% | 80-100% |
Percentages of business, respondents attributed to repeat customers in 2023
Paul Hackett, President of the ITAA commented,
“We are delighted that our members are experiencing a bounce back in the travel trade but we are unsurprised as it is what we are seeing on the ground. The survey results are very positive and it is wonderful to see our members optimistic for the rest of 2023.”
