Turkey is among the top destinations for Italian travelers

The countries that have seen the greatest growth in flight bookings from travelers in Italy in the last 12 months are the United States of America (USA), China and Turkey.

According to the analysis conducted by Travelport, From 1 October 2017 to 30 September 2018, bookings made[1] in Italy through all global distribution systems (GDS) to the USA increased by close to 30,000, up 5% on the previous 12 months. Bookings to China from Italy over the period rose by 26,366, up 9%, and to Turkey by 18,098, up to a significant 27%.

Global distribution systems (GDS) are vast hi-tech reservation networks that allow travel agents, travel management companies and large corporations, among others, to search and book airline seats, hotel rooms, rental cars, and other travel related items. Globally in 2017, Travelport alone processed 1 trillion transactions through its platform.

Sandro Gargiulo, Travelport’s Country Manager for Italy and Malta said: “It’s interesting to see those flight bookings to the USA and China, two of Italy’s top trading partners outside of Europe, have grown so significantly over the past year. We know that business is one of many reasons people choose to travel. Increases in flight capacity from airlines such as Air Italy will also have played a role. The company reported just last month, for example, that its new intercontinental flights from Milan Malpensa to Miami and New York had already reached load factors of more than 90%, despite only being launched in June. Turkey’s tourism industry continues to go from strength-to-strength. According to the Turkish Statistical Institute, income from the sector increased by 30%, year-on-year, in the second quarter of 2018. The growth we’re seeing from Italy to Turkey is of course helped by the increasing number of short, affordable and direct flights to the country.”