Agencies: Travel restrictions and the number of trips are the main determinants of ticket prices in 2021

Air ticket prices are expected to increase by 40% to Arab destinations during next March

• Air ticket prices are expected to change according to destination and country

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A monitoring by Emirates Today showed an increase in the average price of airline tickets from Dubai to Cairo, by more than 30% in March 2021 compared to December of this year, and by 40% to Casablanca, while on the other hand, it is expected to decline by up to 40% to the UK, 50% to the German market.

For their part, managers in international and local travel agencies said that with the opening of more borders, the resumption of new flights, and with an effective vaccine for the Corona virus during the next year, it is expected that the rate of airline ticket prices will change according to destination and country.

They stated to Emirates Today that these expectations could change based on the developments the world is witnessing in containing the Corona pandemic, noting that the price level will depend mainly on travel restrictions, as well as seat capacity, and the number of flights to that destination. Noting that even if the travel restrictions are removed by 100%, some companies may resort to operating limited capacities to control operational costs.

Average prices

In detail, a monitoring by Emirates Today showed an increase in the average price of airline tickets from Dubai to Cairo by more than 30% in March 2021 compared to December of this year, and by 40% to Casablanca, compared to 8% to Amman International Airport.

According to the monitoring, which was based on data from the Sky Scanner company, for round-trip flights in the same month from Dubai, average ticket prices are expected to increase by 1% to Khartoum, compared to a decline of up to 40% to the United Kingdom, and a 50% decline. % To the German market.

New trips

For his part, Mamoun Humaidan, the general manager of the company "Wego", which specializes in the sector of travel services and online reservations for the Middle East, North Africa and India, said that “With more borders opening their doors and the resumption of new trips, and with an effective vaccine for Corona virus next year, we expect The average price of airline tickets changes according to the destination and the country.

He added, "Through the company's website and searches from the Emirates to destinations in the Middle East during the spring and summer months of next year, we saw that the average airline ticket prices will increase by 15% for some destinations, and decrease by 28% for other destinations."

He continued: “If we take Egypt as an example, the average ticket price in the spring of 2021 is expected to reach $ 400 (about 1471 dirhams), an increase of 15% over the same period in 2020, but if we look at India. In the Philippines, we see that the average ticket price decreases by 28% in the summer of 2021 compared to the same period in 2020, to reach $ 325 (about 1,195 dirhams).

Humaidan said that “these expectations may change based on the developments the world is witnessing in containing the Corona pandemic, and finding a suitable vaccine,” adding: “We expect that demand will increase in the next year, and gradually return in late 2021 to approximately 55% of what He had to".

He advised travelers to continue to take preventive measures and follow the necessary measures while traveling, pointing to the importance of advance planning for travel, especially as it will increase the demand for travel, in order to ensure the best price, explaining that pre-booking is one of the best solutions to obtain the most appropriate prices.

He added, "We recommend booking a ticket with flexible conditions, communicating with the company concerned, and submitting a request to return the amount in accordance with the procedures that have been announced."

Spring and summer

In addition, the Executive Vice President of "Al Rayes Travel Company", Muhammad Jassim Al Rayes, said that "the prices of airline tickets during the next year, specifically the spring and summer seasons, depend on several factors, most notably travel restrictions to various destinations, as well as the seat capacity and the number of flights." Flying to that destination ».

Al-Rayyes added, “In the event that travel restrictions are removed and things return to normal, we may witness increases in airline ticket prices by more than 20% compared to the usual price levels for these periods.” He expected that prices would remain in a state of fluctuation during the next year, depending on the levels of demand. According to each destination.

He stated that if travel restrictions are eased, prices are expected to increase compared to 2020, but they may remain below the price level of the previous year 2019, pointing out that the number of flights will play the largest role in this regard.

He explained that some destinations are currently opened to air transport, but they are restricted by the number of flights, pointing out that two or more flights per week have been allowed between two destinations now, compared to more than 20 flights in a period before the pandemic, and therefore the demand is high, and this is reflected in the average ticket price. .

Al-Rayyes said that there is another factor, which is the operational policies that airlines will follow under the current circumstances, indicating that even if travel restrictions are removed by 100%, some companies may resort to operating limited capacities to control operational costs in exchange for raising prices, ruling out that Air carriers resort to flooding the market with a large seat capacity, and to operate at full capacity during the coming period.

He added that the prices of airline tickets to Arab destinations are higher compared to Asian destinations or some European destinations.

Travel restrictions

In a related context, the general manager of Al-Awadi Travel, Amin Al-Awadi, said that “travel restrictions to international destinations are the most prominent determinant of expectations of airline tickets prices during the first half of next year, compared to the same period of this year, as well as the impact of this factor on Levels of demand for air transport ».

Al-Awadi added that “(the pandemic) has created exceptional conditions for the work of various sectors, including aviation,” pointing out that “the sector continues a gradual recovery during the current period, and the continuity of this is related to the decisions that governments will take regarding international travel restrictions.” Demand levels are more than 30% during the next spring and summer, compared to levels this year as a whole.

He stated that “airlines that recorded large losses due to the pandemic are expected to follow very cautious pricing policies during the next year, as they will try to control costs and increase the volume of revenues at the same time, and therefore we expect airline ticket prices to be higher by between 20 and 30%. During the next year, to Arab and Middle Eastern destinations. ”

Al-Awadi pointed out that «all these indicators depend on the volume of demand and the extent of the airlines’ readiness to work at full operational capacity. He expected that «demand will continue to rise over the next year, according to the indicators that appeared in the last quarter of this year.

He advised travelers who wanted to avoid increases in ticket prices, to book early, provided that the tickets are flexible and adjustable.

Conditional tickets

The general manager of Al-Awadi Travel, Amin Al-Awadi, said that “the lowest-priced tickets are bound by many conditions that have to do with the possibility of modification or cancellation, refunds and other conditions,” explaining that the policies and conditions for canceling flights vary from airline to Therefore, it is necessary to know all the conditions of the ticket before booking it.

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