Jet2 has reported a bounce back in summer holiday bookings following the fragile ceasefire in the Middle East, with the company's CEO Steve Heapy noting that the market is in good shape across all destinations.
Bookings Rise Despite Ongoing Tensions
The package holiday operator, which flies about 20 million people annually, said its summer bookings are up by 7.1% compared with the same time last year. The average load factor—measuring available seating capacity filled with paying passengers—has increased by 1.2 percentage points. "There is still a massive amount of people who want to go away," Heapy said. "But they have delayed their purchase because they wanted to see what happened with the conflict."
Heapy added that a heatwave building across Europe has made many "desperate to go away and perhaps sleep in a room with air conditioning." The travel industry had previously expressed concerns that holidaymakers were postponing bookings due to fears over higher jet fuel bills and disruptions from the war in the Middle East.
Destinations Rebound
Jet2 noted a strong recovery in recent weeks across all its destinations. "Turkey, Cyprus, eastern Greek islands, Bulgaria and parts of north Africa have rebounded the most in percentage terms, but all destinations have increased," Heapy stated. Shares in Jet2 jumped about 10% in early trading on Wednesday following the positive comments, despite renewed tensions in the region.
Heapy's remarks came before Donald Trump declared that the ceasefire with Iran was over, causing oil prices to jump sharply by more than 6% over fears about supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.
EU Border Checks Cause Delays
A new EU border check system has led to hours-long delays at major airports in continental Europe, with some airlines reporting flights departing only half full. Heapy advised passengers to "turn up a little earlier than normal," noting that some Jet2 customers had faced longer queues at immigration and passport control. However, he confirmed that no Jet2 flights had left with passengers left behind.
The EU has rejected calls to suspend the implementation of new fingerprinting and facial recognition border controls, despite acknowledging "20 difficult spots" with queue chaos. EU officials stated the system is "not perfect" but a full suspension is "not needed" and "not possible."
UK Holidaymakers Stay Closer to Home
Holiday parks and hotels in the UK have also seen a jump in summer bookings as many British tourists opt to stay closer to home. Research from the UK travel industry body Abta found that 84% of those planning a holiday abroad are choosing a short-haul trip this summer, and 30% said they would book just two to four weeks before their trip.
