BERLIN, March 6 (Reuters) - The war in Ukraine and a
cost-of-living crisis are not spoiling German consumers'
appetite for a holiday, the DRV industry body said on Monday,
forecasting a return in 2023 to the record sales seen before the
COVID-19 pandemic.
The year got off to a strong start, with revenue for travel
agents and online booking platforms doubling year-on-year in
January and up 12% compared with the same month in 2019, the DRV
said.
"Overall, vacationing has a high priority for people. This
gives us optimism despite the known uncertainties of
geopolitical and economic developments," DRV President Norbert
Fiebig said in comments to mark the opening of the ITB travel
fair in Berlin.
Fiebig said he expects revenue this year to return to the
record level seen in 2019, when consumers spent 98 billion euros
($104.29 billion) on vacations - 69.5 billion euros of which on
booked trips and the rest on excursions and other items at their
destination.
The German travel industry already came close to that level
in 2021, when sales amounted to 84 billion euros, almost double
that of 2020, according to the DRV.
($1 = 0.9397 euros)
(Reporting by Ilona Wissenbach and Rachel More
Editing by Miranda Murray)
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