Abacus reports positive figures for Asia Pacific Travel

Asia Pacific travel is continuing its steady growth pattern, according to the latest booking figures issued today by travel facilitator, Abacus International.

Total bookings on the Abacus system increased by 1% to nearly 4 million in October 2005 compared with the same period in 2004. Intra-Asia travel continued to form the bulk of the bookings made at more than 80%.

Abacus President and CEO Don Birch said, “2005 is set to end on a very positive note for international travel, with the World Tourism Organisation forecasting a global growth rate of 5 to 6% for the year. This, coming off the back of a record 2004 which saw a 10.7% growth rate over the previous year, is excellent news for the industry.

“Asia Pacific travel, in particular, is set to surpass the industry average, and is headed for a record growth of 9% this year as we gear up for the usual year-end peak holiday travel season. Already, hotels on the Andaman coast in Thailand are booked to near capacity for the rest of the high season, and Indian hotels are averaging a 90% occupancy rate until March 2006, as holidaymakers start to firm up their travel plans.”

As with previous months, the Asia to Middle East travel route proved to be the strongest performer, with October’s figures showing a 100% increase in bookings over the corresponding period in 2004. Strong economic and financial ties between the two regions and a desire to explore new trade and investment opportunities in the Middle East are fuelling the travel growth.

E-ticketing

Electronic ticketing is also gaining in popularity in Asia with the number of e-tickets issued for the month of October increasing by 55% over the same period last year. In Singapore, nearly one in two tickets (47.1%) issued to date are electronic tickets, with the Philippines and Thailand recording the highest growth rates at 524% and 231% respectively. Some 3.88 million e-tickets have been issued to date this year, an increase of 79% over the same period last year.

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