Q1 2013 global leisure bookings climb +5.1%

According to data released by Pegasus Solutions, the leisure travel market delivered a promising first quarter for hoteliers globally as bookings grew +5.1% through the end of March.

As first quarter volumes in the business and leisure sectors climbed past 2012 levels, rates also delivered, rising +1.7% in the corporate market and +1.4% for leisure.

Leisure travel bookings grew over the prior year in general, helped by an early Easter holiday, and despite a shorter February. March volumes increased +5.9% over last year globally as rates grew +0.5% for the month. The length of stay and booking lead times were either on par with or gaining on the prior year worldwide, indicating a promising consumer trend towards more international and long-haul travel.

“The stabilising or improved performance evident in leisure market indicators suggests hotels should emerge from daily survival mode to actually focus on the future,” said David Millili, Chief Executive Officer of Pegasus Solutions.

Data reported by Pegasus Solutions comes from billions of transactions processed monthly for nearly 100,000 hotels, facilitating more than US$16 billion a year. The Pegasus View reflects data drawn from both GDS and ADS transactions, representing the business and leisure markets respectively.