Fiji is popular with Kiwis travelling again. Photo /Taveuni Palms Resort
Fiji is popular with Kiwis travelling again. Photo /Taveuni Palms Resort
Flight Centre is rehiring staff as Kiwis indulge themselves in "revenge travel".
The firm is building its staff back up from a pandemic low of 400 towards 450 by the middle of the year, as customers flock back to agents to handle bookings in what has become a more complicatedtravel environment.
Although the company is well down on 1200 staff pre-Covid, bookings were running in the thousands rather than the hundreds a year ago, said Flight Centre Travel Group NZ managing director David Coombes.
Inquiries have increased by over 30 per cent on average over the past week and in-store bookings are up by approximately 15 per cent.
Compared to this time last year, inquiries are up by over 180 per cent and bookings by almost 270 per cent. The firm doesn't disclose exact numbers of bookings.
Although bookings were around just 25 per cent of pre-Covid levels, they were following trends at the chain's stores overseas and heading back to 30-40 per cent of 2019 levels.
Coombes is on a tour of the national network and said staff in stores were buzzing.
"To be able to sit in our shops and see customers sitting at every desk and feel the energy that we haven't seen in our shops for so long has been fantastic. Our people are feeling so much more optimistic about things after what's been a challenging couple of years."
The firm had been able to retain 90 per cent of remaining staff during the past two years and 85 per cent of those being re-hired were former Flight Centre workers.
"We believe that things will bounce back really quickly," said Coombes. "And I do think that there will be a labour shortage, we're seeing it in a lot of industries and so we're being active now in preparation for when that happens."
Coombes said that for the past two years staff had been dealing with tricky refund cases for clients and the MIQ system for desperate returnees. Agents were now booking people on holidays, which was the reason why they joined the industry.
Brisbane-based Flight Centre last month reported a half-year loss of A$270 million ($288m) before tax, although analysts at Jarden point out that it is now benefiting from borders being reopened around the world. Its monthly cash burn is falling and it has made market share gains in leisure and business travel while cutting its cost base.
Revenge of the traveller
When countries pass their Omicron peak, travel comes back to about 70 per cent of what the company was selling pre-Covid, says Coombes.
"Travel is a rite of passage in New Zealand, and I wouldn't be surprised if the outcome is even better here," he said.
Before the pandemic, New Zealanders spent between $7 billion and $9b a year on overseas travel and there was strong pent-up demand to start spending again. There was strong demand for luxury, with business class airline bookings strong.
Flight Centre NZ managing director David Coombes. Photo / Greg Bowker
"I like this expression that I'm hearing being bandied about: 'revenge travel'. People are saying they've been deprived of travel for two years," he said.
"These are the people who will lead the way for all Kiwis and the more it happens the more confident we will become."
Price didn't seem to be a big concern.
Coombes said travel had become more complicated with different Covid rules around the world and new clients were turning to agents.
"I think the Kiwi traveller is pretty intrepid but we're seeing people walking in our stores and saying 'I used to do it myself. And I'm not going to do that anymore'.''
Travel conditions were changing daily.
Coombes said DIY holidays were possible and would become easier to arrange as requirements eased around the world, but travellers needed to be careful.
Getting the right insurance was essential, especially as a positive Covid test could prevent travel for days.
"We had a mantra pre-Covid that if you can't afford travel insurance, you can't afford to travel and that's even stronger now."
Australia, Fiji and the Cook Islands were the most popular short-haul destinations, which make up about half of bookings. There was also strong demand for Europe.
The fly-cruise market was strong, with that sector recovering in many countries. Coombes warned that the main problem was finding a spot on a ship.
Balancing the travel equation
He said one problem Kiwi travellers faced was the lack of airline capacity to take them on holiday.
NZ's open for Kiwis but airlines won't recover until tourists can return without restrictions. Photo / Brett Phibbs
This was largely due to airlines being reluctant to restore many flights, given the fact that under current settings, foreign visitors still need to self-isolate here.
Although the Government says a decision will be made soon on reviewing this requirement before many tourists can return in July, airlines needed guidance now to help them decide whether it is worth restoring services.
Although there had been more transtasman flying over the past three weeks, some cities didn't have daily services yet, said Coombes.
There appeared to be little understanding of how the outbound sector and inbound tourism worked together.
"We are the outbound segment of a broader travel and tourism ecosystem. For it all to work well, we need inbound travel too. We are hopeful the Government will move on allowing international tourists into New Zealand in the next month, ideally before the busy Easter period."
Security concerns and rising fuel and ticket prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine weren't a factor in travel booking now.
"The situation in Ukraine is an unknown - we're used to unknowns now and definitely keeping an eye on it. While it is contained there I don't foresee it being a major problem.
"Commercial airlines fly around hotspots, so I think I think that will be okay. If it expands beyond Ukraine then we would have to reassess everything."
