According to data from travel host agency InteleTravel, 2022's total year-to-date sales have reached $400 million as of July, surpassing last year's (former) all-time high of $300 million.
That record-breaking amount represents an increase of 55 percent over 2021's total sales and an 88 percent gain over 2019's pre-pandemic total, both of which had previously been record-setting years for InteleTravel, the world's oldest and largest travel host agency.
James Ferrara, President and Co-founder of InteleTravel, remarked, "InteleTravel's record-breaking results again this year are a testament to the resilience and surging wanderlust of travelers post-pandemic, and the power of our unique model selling travel through the personal relationships of home-based independent advisors. Other travel sellers are simply not seeing this magnitude of growth over 2019."
Key insights include:
- Land-based business this year is surging, exceeding totals for the whole of last year by 41 percent, which also represents a whopping 170 percent increase in comparison to 2019 volumes. Thus far, 2022's year's top land-based sales partners and preferred package suppliers have included Apple Leisure Group Vacations, Vacation Express, Delta Vacations, and American Airlines Vacations.
- Premium and luxury cruise sales this year to date have already outstripped sales for the whole of 2019 by 39 percent. Thus far, this year's top partners and preferred suppliers in the premium and luxury cruise segment include Azamara, Regent Seven Seas, Viking, Virgin Voyages and Windstar.
- Top destinations being booked by consumers through InteleTravel's U.S. network of independent travel advisors in 2022 thus far include (in descending order) Jamaica, Cancun, Dominican Republic, Hawaii, Florida, Las Vegas, Europe, California and Asia.
"We are having another record-breaking year, the second coming out of the pandemic," remarked Dave Spinelli, InteleTravel's Vice President of Industry Relations. "For sure, our leisure travel growth is driven by land vacations as opposed to cruising. At this time last year, we expected the cruise industry to bounce back with a vengeance. For us at least, that hasn't happened. But, for 2022, as in 2021, our packaged land vacations business is up significantly."
Spinelli added, "There is a bright spot in our cruise business, however, in that our premium and luxury cruise line partner's sales are performing very well in 2022. We believe there are several factors contributing to this sweet spot, but with the increasingly strong U.S. dollar, we are expecting the trend not to slow down due to scarcity of air and accommodations. In fact, we are already seeing this segment exceed our expectations for far forward bookings into 2023 and 2024."
Ferrara also rather profoundly observed, "This human-powered model thrived even in the worst period in the history of our industry. And that momentum, propelled by innovative educational strategies and exclusive supplier partner contracts, is carrying the company and its advisors to their highest performance in our 31-year history. No machine or website has been able to connect with consumers like that."
For the latest travel news, updates and deals, be sure to subscribe to the daily TravelPulse newsletter here.
Topics From This Article to Explore
