Latest news with #Mabrian
Travel Daily News
3 days ago
- Travel Daily News
Religious travel trends in Saudi Arabia: Pilgrimage to Mecca 2025
Mabrian's latest data reveals the growing travel impact of Hajj 2025, with over 151.6 million flight seats scheduled to Mecca, in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – a 1.2 million seats increase compared to 2024 festivities. BARCELONA, SPAIN – As one of the largest annual gatherings in the world, Hajj 2025 is expected to attract millions of Muslim pilgrims to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, from June 4th to June 8th. In anticipation of this sacred journey, Mabrian, the global travel intelligence company part of The Data Appeal Company – Almawave Group, reveals new insights into the global travel impact of the event – shedding light on air connectivity, travel patterns, accommodation choices, and visitor profiles. The data helps quantify the significance of this religious pilgrimage as a major travel and tourism phenomenon. Over 151.6 million airline seats are scheduled to Mecca for Hajj 2025: Scheduled air availability to travel between June 1st and 9th, increase by 3.2% year-over-year, and by +1,2 Million (+0.8%) compared to last year's Hajj, which took place from June 14th to 19th. Most top 10 source markets show increased air connectivity, with Brazil (+8.2%) and Germany (+3.4%) among the highest: Compared to Hajj 2024, nearly all of the top 10 source markets by air connectivity have shown slight increases: the United States (+0.1%), India (+0.6%), Japan (+3.2%), Spain (+2.7%), United Kingdom (+1%), Germany (+3.4%), Türkiye (+4%), Italy (+0.6%), and Brazil (+8.2%). The only exception is China, which saw a 3% decline in seat availability. Among countries with large Muslim population, Malaysia (+12.6%) and Egypt (+8.5%) lead in increased seat availability: Among countries with significant Muslim populations, air capacity changes vary. Compared to 2024, Indonesia shows a decline of -8.6%, while Malaysia (+12.6%), Egypt (+8.5%), Ethiopia (+5.1%), and Pakistan (+4.8%) all show positive growth in seat availability. Average stays range from 1.8 nights (domestic) to 3.1 nights (international), with most travellers choosing hotels (88%): The average length of stay is 2.3 nights, with longer durations for international visitors – Egyptians (3.1 nights), Malaysians (2.8), Indonesians (3.1), and British travellers (2.5), whereas domestic visitors average shorter stays of 1.8 nights. In terms of lodging, 88% of visitors stay in hotels, while 12% opt for apartments or alternative accommodations. Among hotel guests, 35.2% stay in 5-star hotels, 28% in 4-star, 19.5% in 3-star, and 17.3% use alternative accommodation. Hotel guests are mostly couples (50.5%), while apartment users prefer group accommodations: Hotel guests in Mecca during Hajj are mainly couples (50.5%), with 22.3% being families, 15.1% groups of friends or extended families, and 12.1% solo travellers. Apartment users show different behaviours; in fact, 52.1% book properties for 3–5 guests, 20.6% choose larger accommodations for over 5 people, 25% book for 2 people, and 2.3% are solo travellers. 'Hajj is not only a profound spiritual journey, but also a major global travel event,' says Carlos Cendra, Partner and Director of Marketing & Communications at Mabrian. 'Our data highlights how destinations, airlines, and accommodation providers may adapt to the evolving needs of religious travellers , a key and growing segment globally.'
Travel Daily News
3 days ago
- Travel Daily News
Summer 2025: Travellers choosing culture over sun
Research across seven European cities shows increasing appetite for cultural attractions, outdoor pursuits, and authentic urban lodging – marking a shift in summer travel trends. FLORENCE – A new study by The Data Appeal Company, in collaboration with Mabrian – both part of Almawave Group, explores European Travel Trends for Summer 2025, highlighting the rising popularity of cultural city breaks across seven key European destinations: Barcelona, Berlin, Copenhagen, Helsinki, London, Paris, and Rome. While Mediterranean beach escapes remain a staple, more travellers are gravitating toward urban experiences rich in culture, creativity, and events – particularly during the shoulder months of June and September. Drawing on insights from traveller sentiment, motivations, pricing fluctuations, and event performance, the report offers tourism professionals data-backed guidance to anticipate shifting demand, benchmark against 2024, and design more sustainable, balanced growth strategies for the high season ahead. Cultural attractions drive satisfaction scores above 90 across Europe A wide analysis of online reviews by The Data Appeal Company reveals traveller sentiment across Europe (April 2024–April 2025): data shows cultural attractions as the top driver of satisfaction, with consistent scores above 90/100 across all cities. Barcelona and Rome lead overall sentiment, fuelled by strong ratings in food, attractions, and short-term rentals. In contrast, hotel experiences lag – especially in Berlin and Copenhagen – suggesting growing price sensitivity and unmet expectations, particularly among domestic travellers. Short-term rentals often outperform traditional hospitality in visitor perception, praised for good value, authenticity, and location convenience – especially for longer stays and group/family travel. While Paris still achieves an overall score of 87.0, low sentiment in short-term rentals and hospitality highlights mixed experiences. Slight increase in U.S. travel intent to Paris, Rome and Barcelona To better detect travel intent for the summer ahead, Mabrian* provided accurate insights about share of searches and air capacity. Between April and September 2025, travel intent and air capacity data reveal American travellers' interest in key European cultural cities like Paris, Rome, and Barcelona, with Share of Searches Index showing a slight rise by +0.04 percentage points along with a notable increase in U.S. seats availability—Barcelona (+14.4%), Rome (+4.3%), and Paris (+1.9%). While U.S. travellers' Share of Searches Index (-0.12 pp) to London sees a moderate decrease, this city remains highly attractive for this market overall. This clearly shows that the recent tensions sparked by the Trump administration's announcement of tariffs have not dampened Americans' travel interest. Other markets show varied trends: Paris gains seats availability from Germany and Greece, Rome does so from the UAE and Poland despite reducing availability in domestic flights, and Barcelona benefits from U.S. and Portuguese growth in air connectivity. Berlin faces slight declines due to low-cost carrier cuts, while Nordic countries continue to act as strategic hubs for long-haul travel, especially toward Asia. Overall, these shifts highlight evolving traveler preferences and airline confidence in cultural urban destinations across Europe even during summer months. Culture still leads – but active and nature experiences gain up to +5.5pp According to Mabrian's drivers analysis, culture remains the primary motivation for city travel across Europe, growing since 2019, with Rome leading at 51% (+2.6 pp), followed by Berlin (48.2%, +2.9 pp) and Paris (49.5%, slight increase). While gastronomy is still the second most common reason to visit, its appeal is declining in most cities, especially London, which saw a 4 percentage point drop. In contrast, interest in active and outdoor experiences is rising sharply: London's 'Nature & Outdoors' motivation increased by +5.5 pp since 2019, becoming its third top driver, and 'Active' experiences like cycling gained popularity in Paris (+4.5 pp), Rome, and Barcelona, reflecting a broader shift toward well-being, movement, and engaging, mood-enhancing travel experiences. Rome and London rates rise over +10% – but August dips in demand Online Travel Agencies' rates and saturation analysed by Data Appeal show that from June to September 2025, London leads in hotel prices among major European cultural capitals, averaging the highest rates with a year-on-year increase of +10.6%, driven by constant demand and a busy events calendar. Rome shows the largest rate hike overall (+13.2%), with peak prices in June and September rather than mid-summer. In contrast, Berlin and Helsinki offer the most affordable stays, with Berlin's prices lowest in August (€172) before rising for Oktoberfest, and Helsinki experiencing a significant price drop due to the absence of a major 2024 event. A notable seasonal trend reveals that August, traditionally peak season in Europe, sees a dip in hotel demand and prices in most cities, as probably travelers favor coastal escapes and business travel slows. Instead, June and September have become the new high-demand months, especially in Paris and Barcelona, reflecting a shift toward early and late summer travel to avoid crowds, heat, and higher flight costs. Flagship events redefine city tourism – London and Berlin lead with millions in impact Events are key accelerators of travel demand, shaping both visitor flows and economic impact across major European cities. According to the Events module featured in D/AI Destinations, Data Appeal's platform for DMOs, from June to September 2025, cities like London, Berlin, and Paris will see peaks in tourism driven by cultural programming – particularly in June and September, now the top-performing months for attendance and pricing. While concerts are the most frequent event type, festivals deliver greater returns by encouraging longer stays and higher spend. Flagship events define each city's seasonal rhythm and tourism economy. London's Notting Hill Carnival leads with expected 2 million attendees and €205 million in revenue, followed by Berlin's Carnival of Cultures with 1.1 million visitors. Paris and Rome capitalize on iconic cycling events like the Tour de France and Giro d'Italia, while Barcelona's strategy prioritizes smaller, high-quality experiences like Sónar Festival, aligning cultural impact with urban sustainability. 'Tourism is evolving fast, and destinations that want to stay competitive must rely on real-time data and traveller insights to guide strategy,' says Mirko Lalli, CEO and founder of The Data Appeal Company. 'This report offers a blueprint for balancing growth with livability – by investing in cultural attractions, improving hospitality experiences, and using sentiment as a dynamic KPI. According to the latest trends, cities should also embrace more outdoor and nature-based experiences, and distribute events more evenly across the summer to enhance visitor satisfaction and support sustainable, year-round tourism.' *Mabrian's assessment of the Share of Searches Index performance applies a three-point scale for increase or decrease (minor, moderate, significant), based on the magnitude of percentage point variations and their relative impact on the overall index value.
Travel Daily News
4 days ago
- Business
- Travel Daily News
Five key trends shaping Latin America 's tourism growth
During LATA Expo 2025, Mabrian shared insights on six key destinations in Latin America – Mexico, Costa Rica, Argentina, Brazil, Peru, and Ecuador – that represent 86% of the region's 76.4 million international arrivals in 2024, according to UN Tourism. BARCELONA, SPAIN – Latin America's international tourism landscape is evolving, driven by five strategic trends identified by Mabrian, the global travel intelligence platform part of The Data Appeal Company – Almawave Group, during LATA Expo 2025. To uncover key trends shaping tourism in these regional powerhouses – Mexico, Costa Rica, Argentina, Brazil, Peru, and Ecuador -, a cross-analysis was carried out, combining consolidated tourism demand data with forecasted air connectivity. The aim was to identify both structural and cyclical demand patterns and explore the opportunities and challenges ahead for each destination in Latin America. Trend #1. Air Connectivity: Optimising to Drive Growth: Diverse realities in air connectivity emerge according to seats availability 2025 forecast. Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina are expanding domestic and international routes, Costa Rica remains heavily focused on international connectivity, with 95% of its seat availability targeting inbound visitors. As per Peru and Ecuador, data shows that international air capacity is being optimised to focus on more traditional, stable short and long-haul markets, with less exposure to more volatile ones like the U.S. Trend #2. Elevating Authenticity through Product Development: Tourist satisfaction remains strong, with Ecuador, Peru, and Costa Rica scoring above 80/100 in Mabrian's Global Tourist Perception Index, whereas Argentina, Mexico, and Brazil achieve positive scores, around 70/100. Safety perceptions are also high across the board, signaling that these destinations are managing to create an environment where travellers feel safe and secure. However, product satisfaction scores- ranging from 65 to 71 out of 100 possible – highlight the need to further enhance cultural authenticity and service quality to meet global expectations, a strategy which will contribute to supporting local economies. Trend #3. Building Stable Demand Mitigating Seasonal Patterns: With the exception of Peru, all destinations benefit from multiple seasonal peaks. For example, Mexico and Ecuador see demand surges in November – December and again mid-year, linked to North American and European holidays. This model allows for targeted promotions during shoulder seasons with specific promotions and campaigns, helping spread visitor flows and reduce pressure on infrastructure. Trend #4. Cultural Appeal to Build Layered Experiences: Cultural experiences are a key demand driver to visit Latin America and these destinations – especially in Argentina and Brazil – while Costa Rica stands out for nature-based travel. Cultural tourism given advantage for these Latin American destinations fosters deeper engagement and longer stays, a competitive edge to create layered experiences with other strong demand drivers, to build more varied, customised, and satisfying tourist products and services, while creating sustainable economic benefits. Trend #5. Micro-Journeys & Lodging Trends: Personalising the Experience: According to Mabrian data, couples make up the majority of tourists visiting these countries, especially in Costa Rica (43%) and Ecuador (36%), while families dominate in Mexico and Brazil. Peru and Ecuador also see a significant number of solo travellers (25%), highlighting opportunities to cater to this segment, currently less budget conscious and more oriented to well-being and self-discovery. In terms of accommodation preferences, hotels remain dominant in Mexico and Brazil, but vacation rentals are prevalent in Argentina (43%), while Costa Rica and Peru offer a wide range of alternatives, reflecting the variety of experiences and traveller types. These insights signal an opportunity to customise travel experiences, building micro-itineraries tailored to different travellers' segments, as identified by the study: Active Families (seeking affordable and convenient accommodation with family-friendly activities), Adventure Seekers (typically travelling solo or in small groups, motivated by active tourism), and Exploring Couples (drawn by culture, nature, and gastronomy, and often looking for luxury retreats while exploring key attractions). 'The data confirms that Latin America is not only rich in natural and cultural assets but is also maturing strategically as a tourism region,' said Mary Menchón, Business Development Lead at Mabrian. 'By aligning air connectivity, diversifying tourist offerings, and tapping into authentic, multi-layered experiences, these destinations are actively shaping more resilient and competitive travel ecosystems. This kind of insight is crucial for industry leaders looking to invest wisely and sustainably in the region's future.'
Travel Daily News
26-05-2025
- Business
- Travel Daily News
Travel intent to U.S. remains below 2024 levels
A new analysis by Mabrian reveals a softening in travel intent to the U.S. up to September 2025 among key outbound markets, including Europe, the GCC, and Australia, compared to 2024. The data highlights growing uncertainty among long-haul travellers and a more cautious approach to planning trips to the U.S. that affects the country's competitive positioning as a destination. BARCELPONA, SPAIN – A new analysis by Mabrian, the travel intelligence platform, reveals a softening in global travel intent to the United States for 2025 among key inbound markets, with demand levels remaining below those recorded in 2024. The findings are based on Mabrian's proprietary Share of Searches Index, which measures the demand market share positioning of the United States, based on the spontaneous global flight search behaviour as an indicator of travel interest. Covering the period from January to April 2025, with travel dates extending through September, the study tracks millions of weekly flight searches to the U.S. from Europe, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, and Australia. The Share of Searches Index* indicates that travel intent to the U.S. has dropped moderately year-over-year across all markets analysed. European Union countries (EU 27) experienced a moderate -0.3 percentage point decline, while Australia and GCC countries both recorded a significant -0.5 percentage point decrease compared to the same period in 2024. 'In the context of millions of searches, these variations represent meaningful shifts in traveller sentiment and intention,' explains Carlos Cendra, Partner and Director of Marketing and Communications at Mabrian, part of The Data Appeal Company – Almawave Group. The performance of the Share of Searches Index highlights the sensitivity of the travellers' demand from all the inbound markets analysed. 'Rather than a lack of interest in visiting the U.S., our travel intent data highlights long-haul travellers' growing uncertainty about planning trips well in advance, with booking lead times readjusting toward shorter planning horizons,' says Cendra. 'It is precisely during the planning phase that the U.S. is in risk of losing competitive ground, as travellers might be considering alternative destinations'. Moderate decrease in travel intent in Europe's key inbound markets As it happened after January 2025 U.S. presidential inauguration, the tariffs announcement from last April impacted European inspirational demand, still below 2024 levels in the period analysed. By the end of April, the U.S. captured 5.5% of the total flight searches launched by the EU 27 countries during the period analysed. This compound Share of Searches Index fluctuated throughout the period analysed, taking a moderate decrease, averaging -0.3 percentage points year-over-year. British demand, while initially impacted, showed signs of recovering by briefly surpassing last year's levels in mid-March, but in early April, after tariffs were announced by Trump Administration, inspirational demand dropped again -0.8 percentage points year-over-year (moderate decrease). By the end of April, Share of Searches Index settled at 8.1% indicating a weak recovery trend that might benefit from the bilateral agreement on tariffs between the both the UK and the U.S. announced on May 8th. Average Share of Searches Index for Germany, Italy, and France settles around 4.7% by end of April. Germany and Italy each recorded significant decrease nearing -1 percentage point compared to 2024 after the U.S. government updated their tariffs policy, an announcement that had a similar effect in France. In fact. French travel intent, that was converging to 2024 levels, to slightly drop again by mid-April, accumulating a -0.5% percentage points moderate decrease year-over-year during the weeks analysed. Uncertainty in the GCC's and a mixed outlook for Australia Even though it is not still among the most demanded destinations by Gulf Arab countries, the U.S. concentrates 1.7% of the total flight searches launched by these countries between February and April, and overall inspirational demand remains below 2024 levels, showing a significant decrease of -0.5 percentage points year over year. The Share of Searches Index shows that travel demand from the United Arab Emirates dropped weekly by -0.75 percentage points on average, a significant decrease considering that, by end of April, the U.S. market share in the UAE settled to 2.1%. Also, by the end of April, 0.9% of flight searches from Saudi Arabia aimed at the U.S., dropping a significant average of -0.3 percentage points year over year. Finally, and while Australian demand to the U.S. has consistently trailed 2024 levels since February 2025, the last week of April saw the first positive year-over-year shift in ten weeks. The Search of Searches Index increased by +0.3 percentage points, reaching 3.5%, signalling a moderate recovery that will require monitoring in the weeks ahead. * Mabrian's Share of Searches Index is proprietary index that reflects the strength of travel demand to a destination based on the global flight searches behaviour. Mabrian's assessment of the Share of Searches Index performance applies a three-point scale for increase or decrease (minor, moderate, significant), based on the magnitude of percentage point variations and their relative impact on the overall index value.
Local Spain
08-05-2025
- Business
- Local Spain
New study sheds light on who owns all the Airbnb-style lets in Spain
Short-term tourism lets have been pinpointed as one of the main reasons why property prices and rents have skyrocketed in the last five years in Spain. Despite this, the Spanish government has not released any detailed data clearly illustrating which group owns the most flats, and whether they're using it for short-term, temporary or long-term renting. The Local Spain has previously carried out research into this matter, with the best official approximation of the structure of property ownership in Spain being data by the Barcelona Metropolitan Housing Observatory (OHMB), which in a 2022 study concluded that 36 percent of rental apartments in Barcelona belonged to landlords who owned more than 10 properties. Now in 2025, we have new data to help us ascertain who owns a vast number of short-term lets in Spain. A study by tourism intelligence platform Mabrian carried out for leading Spanish radio station Cadena Ser showed that 26 percent of tourist apartments in Spain are owned by landlords who own multiple properties, rather than individuals who just own one. Mabrian analysed data from three main platforms - Airbnb, and Tripadvisor - and looked several factors, such as the number of licenses reported, the distribution of owners, and the number of vacation rentals they manage. Mabrian defines single property owners as ones with only one short-term rental property, medium-scale owners as ones with two to 10 properties, and large holders as those with 11 to 51 properties. In the last category they have split them into three tiers based on the number of properties they own, ranging from 11 to 20, from 21 to 50, and 51 or more. The study also revealed that four out of 10 rental apartments haven't reported that they have a tourist licence. This most likely means that they don't have one and that they're not complying with current regulations where they're located. This could mean they don't have permission from their neighbours, don't have a separate entrance or are located in an area which has banned tourist licences. 'There's a requirement to have one, but not a requirement to publish it," explained Carlos Cendra, Partner and Director of Marketing and Communications at Mabrian. Furthermore, the study showed that the more properties a landlord owns, the higher the price they charge. Single-property owners charge an average of €41.10, medium-scale property owners €46.90, and large-scale property owners with more than 51 apartments charge €63.80. "We attribute this to different product positioning and a more professionalised marketing system. These are much more professionalised structures that offer much better quality, with a different quality positioning than that offered by small-scale property owners or individuals. This means they have a specific focus on increasing results and profitability, and they can possibly sell at a slightly higher price," Cendra explained. Tourist apartments are being partly being blamed for Spain's housing crisis. Given that they can be considerably more lucrative when they have high occupancy rates, landlords often prefer to rent to tourists than to long-term tenants, reducing the stock of normal rentals and thus increasing prices. Even though Mabrian's data shows that 26 percent of Airbnb-style lets are in the hands of multi-property landlords and companies, the remaining 74 percent of Spain's short-term lets belong to individual owners renting just one unit out to holidaymakers. This would suggest that average Spaniards trying to make some extra money with their second home make up the bulk of the country's holiday let market. In many cases, the money generated from letting out their second home can be what allows them to make ends meet every month. Others with sought-after homes in popular tourist spots may be able to make considerable earnings, but nowhere near the profits of companies and multi-property owners with a large portfolio of properties. These nuances are what makes regulating the country's holiday let industry so complicated and explains to an extent why the Spanish government has struggled to come out with effective legislation thus far. Different municipalities across the country have their own rules for getting a tourist licence, which aims to decrease the numbers, but many still operate illegally.
