COVID-19: Jet2 Says Vacationers Leave Bookings Until Last Minute | Economic news

Vacationers are leaving until the last minute to book their summer vacation amid uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 restrictions, travel group Jet2 has said.

The company expressed disappointment at the lack of clarity in the “traffic lights” plan to allow overseas travel to return next month, including countries that will be on the “green” list.

In a business update, he said: “Unsurprisingly, given the near-term uncertainty, customers are booking much closer to the summer 21 departure.

“However, we continue to be encouraged by the volume of guest bookings for winter 21/22 and summer 22, for which package vacation bookings show a significantly higher mix of the total.”

Jet2 said the impact and duration of the pandemic restrictions slated for this summer remained “difficult to determine” – which is why it has decided to extend the suspension of flights and vacations until June 23 inclusive.

He said he was convinced that “once normalcy returned”, customers would be determined to enjoy vacations in his destinations in the Mediterranean, the Canary Islands and in European cities.

The update came as the group envisioned an underlying loss of up to £ 385million for the year through the end of March, but said its financial position was strong after having raised an additional £ 1bn and taken steps to preserve cash flow during the pandemic.

Jet2 is one of many tour operators asking for more clarity on plans to restart leisure travel on May 17.

The government has been urged to clarify as soon as possible which countries will be on a green list that will allow holidaymakers to travel without quarantine upon their return.