Hays Travel reports best Saturday in trading history

Hays Travel has experienced the best Saturday in its trading history on Sunshine Saturday and a record sales day for its Independence Group members.

The travel agency chain said it had made a “flying start” to the peak January period.

Chief operating officer Jonathon Woodall-Johnston said the group had not expected trading to be so strong.

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He said: “We had anticipated that trading this January might not reach the same levels as last year, when there was still a lot of pent-up demand from the pandemic.

“However, early indications suggest that this peaks could be just as strong as last year, with customers appreciating the level of service and reassurance they get from talking to a travel agent, face to face in a branch.”

Woodall-Johnston said customers were “definitely doing their research” and credited the summer 2024 campaign by supplier partners as “brilliant”.

“Travellers can get real value for their money, so it’s not surprising that summer 2024 holidays are our biggest seller at the moment, though we have not seen margins compromised,” he said.

He added that the Hays Travel Mastercard cashback campaign, which offers free spending money to people new to its travel money card and is in its second year, had enjoyed “excellent take up” and said customers continued to be attracted to book with the company thanks to its strong brand and reputation for “expert advice, financial security and payment options to spread the cost of the their holiday”.

Hays reported top-selling destination for this summer 2024 to be Spain, Portugal, and Turkey, and said the group was seeing an increase in US sales, particularly New York and Orlando, while there has been “consistent growth in bookings” for the Far East, such as Thailand, Bali, and Singapore.