TUI Group Sees Recovery, Normal Booking Levels in 2022

Global leisure travel giant TUI Group said bookings for 2022 are “encouraging” and that it expects in summer 2022 to recover booking levels, adding that it has so far achieved 69 percent of pre-crisis level bookings.

Announcing its fourth financial quarter results for 2021, the global tour operator said it was “taking another step out of the crisis” thanks to the successful resumption of travel and was close to reaching break-even in terms of underlying EBIT at -97 million euros in Q4 2021. 

“The operating business is back. We are generating significant cash inflows and achieving positive results again in many markets and with our hotels and TUI hotel brands. The program of the first financial quarter of 2022 is already almost fully sold,” said Fritz Joussen, CEO TUI Group.

According to the company, bookings for 2022 are robust with more than 1.4 million additional bookings made since the company’s last update in October 2021. 

TUI is currently reporting 4.1 million bookings for winter 2021/22 and summer 2022 and planning for capacity in winter 2021/22 at 60-80 percent of the pre-Covid-19 2019. 

The company adds that 69 percent has currently already been achieved in Q1 2022, with 93 percent for the first quarter of next year already sold. 

For winter and 2022, holidaymakers are choosing higher-value offers and more package tours and are also prepared to plan a larger budget for their holidays, said TUI.

Average prices, meanwhile, are approximately 15 percent higher than in the pre-pandemic year. For the summer of 2022, average prices are even 23 percent higher.

“In 2021 we have already achieved around 60 percent of the annual cost savings of 400 million euros announced for 2023,” said Joussen.

The tour operator said that it has reduced debt with refinancing measures, strengthened the balance sheet and secured “very solid liquidity”.

In the fourth quarter of financial year 2021, TUI generated clear positive cash inflows and almost tripled revenue year-on-year to 3.5 billion euros compared to Q4 2020 at 1.2 billion euros.

Looking ahead, TUI said desire to travel is strong. In 2021, 5.4 million people traveled with TUI and booking levels for 2022 are already “encouraging” at 4.1 million bookings.