It has been a long 18 months for the business travel industry so it is a huge relief to see bookings begin to rebound. We have clients that want and need to travel imminently – and, as we’ve said all along, these travellers will be intrinsic to the overall recovery of the UK’s economy.
Maria Baty, Managing Director of ALTOUR UK
(October 8, 2021) –The UK division of ALTOUR has reported a rapid uplift in bookings thanks to the string of recent travel announcements, including last night’s Red List removals, and has confirmed a strong finish to September sales which are up over fifty per cent from August.
The business said the most notable increases were for travel to the US for later this year as clients begin ramping travel programmes back up. Sectors where demand has increased the most, they said, include media, entertainment and publishing clients. The team is now preparing for a wave of enquiries for travel across Africa and South America thanks to the significant reduction of the Red List.
Throughout the pandemic, ALTOUR UK has been offering clients and industry peers access to a series of informative webinars and online resources to help businesses navigate the challenges of Covid-19 and Brexit. Now that business travel is returning, the TMC say the work they conducted on information-sharing has been crucial to quickly restoring business with existing and new clients.
Maria Baty, Managing Director of ALTOUR UK, said:
“It has been a long 18 months for the business travel industry so it is a huge relief to see bookings begin to rebound. We have clients that want and need to travel imminently – and, as we’ve said all along, these travellers will be intrinsic to the overall recovery of the UK’s economy.
“There was an immediate response to the changes announced in September, in particular the reduction in pre-departure testing and the confirmation of the US reopening. The fact that we are seeing such a remarkable response from clients demonstrates just how much Government travel policies have impacted business.
“Last night’s announcement also marks a pivotal milestone for recovery. South America and Africa have largely been off-limits for most business travellers so unlocking access to these countries will have a powerful and immediate effect on corporate travel recovery because we know that clients need access to these destinations.
“At the beginning of the pandemic, it wasn’t uncommon to hear scepticism about the return of business travel – remarks wondering whether it would ever be the same thanks to rise of video conferencing. On the contrary, the need for impactful corporate travel is more important than ever. The way we travel may have changed but I believe we are about to see the resurgence of the Travel Management Company in a way in which we’ve not seen before.
“Clients need us for more than just booking their travel: what we delivered during the pandemic underlines this point. From specialist duty of care knowledge to in-depth support about how to travel – I believe our value to our clients has only increased. Yes, people want to travel smarter and more efficiently post-Covid – but they need the support of a skilled TMC to help them achieve this.”
ALTOUR UK recently confirmed several new additions to its UK operation including the merging of sister company Barrhead Travel’s business travel division as well as welcoming Good Travel Management to its network.
About ALTOUR
Founded by CEO Alexandre Chemla in 1991, with sales of over $4 billion in 2019, ALTOUR, a division of Internova Travel Group, is one of the largest travel management companies in the United States and one of the largest travel management companies globally. Serving the corporate and leisure luxury and mid-markets and entertainment community, ALTOUR has 53 offices and more than 1,300 travel professionals worldwide. In addition to travel management services, ALTOUR companies include ALTOUR Air, ALTOUR Meetings & Incentives and the ALTOUR Global Network.
About Internova Travel Group
Internova Travel Group is one of the largest travel services companies in the world with a collection of leading brands delivering high-touch, personal travel expertise to leisure and corporate clients. Internova manages leisure, business and franchise firms through a portfolio of distinctive divisions. Internova represents more than 62,000 travel advisors in over 6,000 company-owned and affiliated locations predominantly in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, with a presence in more than 80 countries.