London, Denver & Singapore - OTA Insight, the cloud-based data intelligence platform for the hospitality industry, has revealed that leisure travel is making a strong recovery in Australia, with the Gold Coast and Cairns among most popular destinations for Australians looking for a winter escape.

OTA Insight’s newest product, Market Insight, is a predictive market intelligence solution. Market Insight data is forecasting patterns of high traveller demand for the Gold Coast through winter, with demand increasing 13% week over week, from May 9 (see figure 1). On some days over the winter months, hotels are nearing maximum occupancy. Throughout the school holiday period of July 1 - 10, up to 59% of hotels are unavailable, as is 89% of alternative accommodation.

Figure 1— Source: LighthouseFigure 1— Source: Lighthouse
Figure 1— Source: Lighthouse

Over the next 90 days, Cairns is also experiencing a similar pattern of consistently high demand (see figure 2). For example, on June 12, 86% of alternative accommodation options are unavailable, as are 56% of hotels - including some hotels which are completely sold out. On July 4, up to 34% of all hotels are unavailable, while 83% of alternative accommodation is unavailable.

Figure 2
Figure 2

“A recent Deloitte report suggested international travel may not reach pre-COVID levels in Australia until some point in 2023. However, Market Insight’s predictive intelligence is showing a strong recovery for the domestic travel sector in 2021,” said Amit Peshawaria, Head of Sales, APAC at OTA Insight.

“This is evident with the surge in demand for the holiday destinations of Cairns and the Gold Coast this winter. With a forward looking data solution, hoteliers in Australia can now better understand potential demand for their hotel in a competitive and shifting market. This will assist not only the Revenue team but also Sales and Marketing teams, who can act first on demand fluctuations by addressing their pricing strategy and delivering appropriate promotions to the right audience, at the right time.”

Market Insight data demonstrates that residents of cities such as Melbourne (where 40% of Cairns’s travellers are arriving from), are looking to escape cold winter temperatures to Queensland’s milder seaside locations. City breaks for long weekends are also on the rise, with Sydney the most desirable city destination, and Melbourne following behind.

Current trends also suggest that consumers are looking to book with shorter lead times (see figure 1). The week between Christmas and New Year is a notable exception, with Perth seeing a surge in demand over any other region during this timeframe. To discover how traveller search patterns are changing in your market through the recovery, consult with the OTA Insight team 1-2 June at NoVacancy Sydney, stand #207. Alternatively, access our free Global Travel Search Trends resource to learn more about shifts in demand and consumer behaviour.

About Lighthouse

Lighthouse (formerly OTA Insight) is the leading commercial platform for the travel & hospitality industry. We transform complexity into confidence by providing actionable market insights, business intelligence, and pricing tools that maximize revenue growth. We continually innovate to deliver the best platform for hospitality professionals to price more effectively, measure performance more efficiently, and understand the market in new ways. Trusted by over 70,000 hotels in 185 countries, Lighthouse is the only solution that provides real-time hotel and short-term rental data in a single platform. We strive to deliver the best possible experience with unmatched customer service. We consider our clients as true partners—their success is our success. For more information about Lighthouse, please visit: https://www.mylighthouse.com.

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