New research from air ticketing data company ForwardKeys found that flight bookings to the United States have “soared” following announcements that the destination would reopen to vaccinated foreign travelers in November. By mid-October, weekly bookings exceeded 70 percent of prepandemic levels.
The first announcement was made on Sept. 20, when the White House said that visitors from the United Kingdom, Ireland, the 26 Schengen countries, China, India, South Africa, Iran and Brazil would be allowed to enter the U.S. without being subject to quarantine provided they were fully vaccinated. That caused an immediate reaction, with week-on-week bookings from the U.K. jumping 83 percent, from Brazil jumping 71 percent, and from the European Union jumping 185 percent.
The second announcement was made on Oct. 15, when Assistant Press Secretary Kevin Munoz named Nov. 8 as the date restrictions would be relaxed. Week-on-week bookings climbed higher still, jumping 15 percent from the U.K., 26 percent from the EU and 100 percent from Brazil.
Looking at the distribution of confirmed bookings for arrival in November and December from Brazil, the EU and the U.K., the report noticed two clear peaks. The first peak was for travel immediately after the relaxation of restrictions during the week commencing Nov. 8, achieving 15 percent of bookings. The second peak was over Christmas, achieving 16 percent of bookings during Christmas week and 14 percent the week before.
“This data yet again demonstrates the enormous pent-up demand for travel,” said Juan Gómez, head of market intelligence for ForwardKeys. “Immediately people heard that they would be allowed to visit the USA again; they booked; and a substantial proportion booked to fly as soon as they could. It is also interesting to note that bookings climbed higher once a specific date was given. That is not entirely surprising for two reasons. First, the certainty of a specific date inspires confidence. Second, those wanting to travel before the end of November could not afford to make a commitment until they knew for sure that they could travel when they wanted to. I am optimistic that in the coming weeks, we will see a steep increase in bookings to the USA for the Christmas period.”