Suppressed demand during the pandemic leads consumers to seek alternative vacation destinations, whether by bus or plane
07/11/2023
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Road sector expects records for July’s holidays — Foto: Pedro Ladeira/Folhapress
Pent-up demand continues to drive tourism in Brazil, and the sector is optimistic about the July holiday season. Not even high airfares have kept travelers away. Airlines will offer 72,500 flights this season. This is the first time since the beginning of the health crisis that airlines will match the supply of flights seen before the pandemic period, according to data shared by Gol, Azul, and Latam with Valor.
Consumers unable to afford air travel also caused bus travels to soar, with companies expecting records for the period.
Latam’s largest domestic increases were planned for the Northeast region, while international increases were planned mainly for tourist destinations such as Mendoza and Buenos Aires, Argentina. Latam will offer 24,500 flights in Brazil’s high season, up 7.8% compared to the pre-pandemic period.
Azul will increase the number of flights in markets already served regularly. Recife will be the focus, with flights to São Paulo, Maceió, Aracajú, Fortaleza, Campinas, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, João Pessoa, Natal, and Goiânia. Azul’s main hub, the Viracopos Airport in Campinas, will increase the number of flights to Goiânia, Porto Seguro, Natal, and Maceió. The airline plans to offer 28,000 flights in July, 10% above pre-pandemic period levels.
“We are preparing a high season focused on tourist cities and routes that take customers from strategic points to two of our main hubs: Confins Airport, in Belo Horizonte, and Guararapes Airport, in Recife. From these airports, they can more easily connect to other destinations in Brazil and abroad,” said Beatriz Barbi, Azul’s network planning manager.
Gol will have 20,000 flights during the high season. The company has taken a more cautious approach to offering seats in the domestic market, and as a result will operate 18% fewer departures than before the pandemic. Nevertheless, the number represents a 9% increase over the same month last year and a 12% increase on the same basis in terms of seats. In total, 17 new seasonal and regular routes will be launched during the holidays.
“In the country, destinations in all regions will gain additional supply compared to June and will become focal points in the reception of leisure passengers,” said Bruno Balan, Gol’s airline network strategic planning manager. The executive pointed out cities which had an increase of more than 40% in the number of flights offered, such as Caldas Novas, Porto Seguro, Santarém, Ilhéus, Jericoacoara, and Bonito. In the company’s largest bases there was a 17% increase in the number of flights offered, as the cases of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Salvador. “It means that more than 3 million seats will be offered in these cities in July,” he said.
In the road sector, the school holidays are a reason for optimism for companies, which since March have seen an average drop of 10% in the volume of passengers transported compared to the first three months of the year. That result follows the trend of slowdown in the service sector. Skyrocketing air fares – which reached the highest levels in the last 10 years – contributed to a higher demand from the road sector.
“Despite this downturn in recent months, we believe in a recovery of bus travels with the arrival of the July holidays, which is historically the month with the highest number of passengers transported, surpassing months such as December and January,” said Leticia Pineschi, consultant, and spokesperson for the Brazilian Association of Passenger Land Transport Companies (ABRATI).
According to the trade association, in July, the companies expect to transport 4 million passengers. In 2019, before the pandemic, there were about 3.7 million. In 2021, already under the impact of the health crisis, there were 2.5 million.
Buser, a startup in the road segment, expects to reach 500,000 passengers in July, a record for the month of the company founded six years ago. Buser said the volume is 10 times higher than that seen in 2019.
“We expect to place at least 400 more travel groups, mobilizing partner charter companies to meet the demand, which is expected to reach 10,000 travel groups in July,” said Leonardo Sousa, Buser’s operations manager.
According to the study conducted by Decolar, the Brazilian subsidiary of Buenos Aires-based Despegar, Fortaleza and Buenos Aires top the list of the most popular destinations for the season.
“Searches for July holiday travel continue to grow week by week on our distribution channels. In May, the demand for flights for this period increased by 109% compared to April, which indicates that consumers are planning the trip in advance and are attentive to promotions, “said Daniela Araujo, director of Decolar.
The United States has historically been the main focus of Brazilians, but the skyrocketing exchange rates and difficulties in obtaining visas have precluded the recover.
*Por Cristian Favaro — São Paulo
Source: Valor International