Low-cost airline operators have registered an over 90% occupancy rate for the Christmas holidays on top of an increase in ticket prices, as operators' zero-euro, one-euro or 30-euro offers were the first to be snapped up.
A return low-cost ticket during the Christmas holidays costs around 200 euros, whereas last month, when the battle for low prices began, offers ranged between 1 and 30 euros (airport taxes not included). The situation can be explained by the fact that low-cost operators have already secured a high occupancy rate, of around 90%.
"For the winter holidays, the occupancy rate has already reached 93%. The highest rate is for flights on the Bucharest-Paris (Charles de Gaulle) route, followed by Milan, Bologna, Bari and Venice," stated MyAir representatives, which operate several flights to Italy and also introduced routes to France and Spain. In line with company data, a Bucharest-Paris flight on December 21 exceeds 150 euros, all taxes included.
Blue Air representatives (the largest low-cost airline on the market) also revealed their occupancy rate around Christmas and New Year's Eve already stands at 80%. Although the company has not raised its ticket prices, the high occupancy rate makes the minimum price even higher than usual.
In addition, Wizz Air representatives have noticed travellers tend to make their reservations a long time in advance for the Christmas holidays. "Reservations are made quite early in the year. The occupancy rate is as high as usual - above 80%, as many people travel home or visit friends and relatives abroad," said Natasa Kazmer, corporate communications & public affairs manager at Wizz Air.
EasyJet, which entered the market on December 10, on the Bucharest-Milan route, and subsequently launched flights from Bucharest to London and Madrid, expects the winter holidays to be the busiest period since it stepped onto the market.
As a rule, an economy class ticket on the same route, operated by the same airline often registers price fluctuations. It is not only promotions that generate these differences, but also the moment when the ticket is purchased or the time spent at the destination, according to airlines' representatives. Therefore considering around 80-90% of low-cost flights are fully booked, the minimum price is now 100 euros higher than several weeks ago.
Travel agencies' representatives have also registered a sales level of 80% for Christmas and New Year's Eve packages, which indicates that most Romanians bought their winter holiday packages at least two months ago.
Winter holiday prices
MyAir: the cost of the Bucharest-Paris flight on December 21 exceeds 150 euros, all taxes included
Blue Air: the cheapest ticket on the Bucharest-Barcelona route on December 22 and returning on December 27 costs around 250 euros, all taxes included
Wizz Air: a return ticket on the Cluj-London flight departing on December 27 and returning on January 3 costs 160 euros
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