Spanish travel company eDreams Odigeos June reservation exceeded pre-pandemic levels, it stated on Monday. This was due to increased vaccination rates and looser COVID-19 restrictions.The company stated that June bookings on its platforms increased by 2% compared to the same month in 2019. It also said that reservations were 51% lower than the April prepandemic level and 22% lower in May.Chief Executive Dana Dunne stated that we have always believed that the decline in leisure travel demand was temporary and that travel is still a popular choice.Global travel is showing a slight recovery, but tourism-dependent countries in southern Europe expect to see about half of their arrivals in 2019.According to David Elizaga, finance chief, bookings have increased in all European countries except Britain. There are still restrictions and uncertainty that discourage people from traveling.The company stated that a greater number of customers are now purchasing short-haul flights with fewer passengers, which has resulted in a 29% decrease in average purchase value. Elizaga stated that the average booking value also dropped due to lower air ticket prices.He added that most of the data included bookings corresponded with flights in June, July, and August.Despite all the uncertainty, the company remains optimistic about a recovery.The long-term outlook is good for leisure travel, but volatility could still occur in the coming months, according to the company's statement. This was due to new coronavirus variants as well as shifting government travel restrictions.Elizaga did not forecast the company's profitability in its current financial years. The company posted an adjusted net loss ($103.2 million) of 87 million euros in the year ended March 31st, compared to an adjusted profit (35 million euros) the previous year.($1 = 0.8427 Euros)(Reporting by Nathan Allen Editing By Inti Landauro Louise Heavens, and David GoodmanThis article was originally published by Reuters. It was licensed legally through the Industry Dive publisher system. All licensing inquiries should be directed to legal@industrydive.com
