LE FIGARO. – How have the prices of plane tickets changed this fall?
Frederic PILLOUD.
-During this month of September, the average price of plane tickets (round-trip airfare) increased by 28% compared to the same period in 2019, our year of comparison.
Concretely, you have to pay 102 € more for an identical journey.
The significant upside momentum has been at work for three months.
At best, airline ticket prices will remain at current levels for the next few months and into 2023, mainly due to high oil prices.
In any case, do not expect a price reduction.
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Which destinations are on fire the most?
Prices soar to Thailand, which is reopening to tourism (+57%, i.e. an average ticket price of more than €880), or the United States.
Conversely, the increase is much more moderate for tickets to Portugal and Spain;
but also to Morocco and Tunisia, where proactive policies for the return of tourists are at work.
Frédéric Pilloud, marketing and e-commerce director of MisterFly.
Press picture
Concerning Thailand, which remained almost closed to tourism for several months, isn't the surge in prices also cyclical?
Admittedly, the country is reopening and, like Asia in general, this context of reduced transport supply capacity could explain the rise in prices in the face of demand.
But the reality is above all that the companies no longer fly over Russia and, by taking the routes to the south, lengthen the journey by 2 to 3 hours.
This is as much additional fuel as is consumed.
In this context, the Gulf is becoming a central hub for Asia.
The Gulf companies have also significantly increased their prices.
The Covid is no longer present in the minds of people who book.
In the wake of a euphoric summer, is the resumption of travel confirmed?
We had a very good summer during which the notion of price was almost ignored in the eyes of tourists.
At this point, we are on 2019 levels but in value only, not in passenger volume, which is only 70-80% of the pre-pandemic gauge.
Fewer people are traveling and they are spending more.
But this momentum ran out of steam in September and some clues alerted us, for example, the online payment rejection rate which increased.
This brings us directly to the problem of purchasing power and solvency.
Since mid-September, sales have been relatively “soft”.
We recorded a peak last Tuesday, when people received their salaries.
The desire to travel is there, but it is confronted with reality.
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For the benefit of which destinations does the arbitration take place?
As price increases are more pronounced on long haul, the carryover takes place on closer destinations and on France.
In this month of September, Greece, for example, reached an unprecedented level of reservations.
Italy is also back and Morocco and Portugal are enjoying the late season.
Despite everything, the level of reservations to the United States remains high.
Are travelers still dreading the Covid?
No, and this is major information: the Covid is no longer in the minds of people who book.
This translates to two levels.
First, we find the pre-pandemic levels of travel anticipation.
Then, the insurance take-up rate (cancellation etc.) fell to 25%, a level comparable to 2019. It had sometimes been able to reach 50%.
Airline ticket prices: a continuous rise
On September 19, the Ministry for Ecological Transition published the price index for air passenger transport (IPTAP) departing from France for the month of August 2022. After the explosion in prices observed in July 2022 (+ 43, 5%), the increase continues at a slower pace, however: + 36.3% for all destinations compared to the same month the previous year.
