The latest edition of Duetto’s Pulse Report, which tracked data for the month of December, showed the majority of markets are continuing to feel serious effects of continued consumer uncertainty as COVID cases rise rapidly.
New bookings remain low partly due to the increased risk of COVID exposure and continued travel restrictions imposed in various states, according to the report. However, looking at pick-up for future months, December 2020 delivered positive momentum in new bookings for stays in January, February, and March 2021, with web traffic also showing some modest increases. This positive momentum is welcome news to the industry, but it is important to keep in mind the fact that the numbers are still very low compared to previous years, the report noted.
For travel to Latin America, bookings made in December 2020 for stays during the next 12 months, compared to the same period in November, are up by only the slightest margin. January witnessed a relatively healthy percentage growth (up 88 percent), but when taking into account the absolute numbers, the change month over month was not something to get too excited about, according to the report. February through August increased on average by only 15.7 percent, while September moved in the wrong direction with a slowdown in net new booking activity of minus 3 percent compared to bookings made in November 2020. Web traffic has also been disappointing for the Latin America region as it remains clear that people are still uneasy about the thought of travel.
“While we are excited for the year ahead and have an increased sense of optimism about what’s to come as vaccines continue to roll out, reviewing the latest round of data reminded us that we’re going to have to be patient,” said Hannah Weller Barrise, Duetto’s director of hospitality solutions for the Americas. “In this month’s Pulse Report, we did see a handful of promising figures in terms of month-over-month percentage growth, but when taking into account the absolute numbers, it is clear there is a long way to go. We continue to look at web traffic as an indicator of consumer demand, and in the coming weeks will watch this very closely as we have a better understanding of the vaccination timeline, and will look to see how this impacts the confidence for summer and fall stays.”
