Karryon into September 2024: Together in Travel
Welcome to your monthly briefing on all things?Karryon, which spotlights the trending stories and key notables in the travel industry in Australia and beyond.
September and Spring already?
Record-breaking August temperatures and adverse weather events in Australia served as yet another stark reminder of the impact of the climate crisis and the shifting seasons we face. Travelling off-peak to lesser-known destinations has never presented a more timely opportunity. Not to mention baking sustainable and regenerative practices into travel business models.
As we stride into spring, I find it's always the perfect time to clear out old habits and clutter that no longer serve me and welcome new ones that will. What changes could you bring to move ahead?
Speaking of changes and transformation, the news in August was, as always, packed with plenty of needle-shifting, but perhaps the most crystal ball-esque industry insights emerged at the end of the month when we gained a glimpse into the performance and predictions of the ASX-listed travel giants.
Flight Centre Travel Group (FLT), Helloworld Travel Limited (HLO), Corporate Travel Management (CTM), Qantas Group (QAN), Air New Zealand (AIZ), and Webjet (WEB) all revealed their FY23/24 scorecards and the results were a mixed bag.
After two years of record booms, especially for airlines, it was always going to be telling. The key takeaways? While airlines hit some turbulence after recent record results, retail and corporate travel companies are still forging ahead, with no significant slowdown in sight—despite the continued downbeat cost-of-living and inflation situation in Australia.
Overall, the outlook remains upbeat, though some outside the travel industry are still wondering how this could be. The answer? It is, of course, essentially the same one in principle as it was during 2009's global financial crisis (GFC).
Australians, in particular, love and need to travel to connect with the world and will always prioritise trips and experiences over other 'stuff' in life. Sadly, right now, that stuff, which includes retail spending and dining out, is feeling the full impact of our spending priorities.
Instead, thanks to airfares coming back down to earth in the last few months, the next post-pandemic era of more affordable travel is opening up on top of what continues to be one big cresting wave of good fortune, particularly at the cashed-up end of the market.
In other news, August saw Karryon host its first-ever ‘Niche is Nice’ roadshows in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne. These three successful events connected over 300 travel advisors with 40 niche travel suppliers, and the feedback has been incredible. We couldn't be prouder, so a big thanks to everyone involved and especially our superstar Event Manager Simran Mediratta .
We also learned that September is the most popular travel month for Australians, with 28 per cent of outbound bookings purchased less than three months before departure, according to TourRadar , who shared that and many more nuggets of wisdom with us last week at an insightful event in Brisbane.
On behalf of all of us at Karryon, thank you again to all our readers and partners for your overwhelming support in August.
Your readership and partnership drive us forward every day, enabling us to double down on our mission of connecting people in travel.
Here's to an enriching and prosperous September ahead, and safe and fun travels to you, wherever you may be.
Matt.
Karryon's Top 20 Headlines for August
Did you hear the one about a new non-stop flight from Norway to Australia? No, it wasn't a joke. Indeed, it was as far from Scandinavia as a joke for us as the story claimed our #1 spot for the month. News of a domestic carrier called, wait for it, Koala Airlines was also a cuddly surprise addition. But was it real? April was months ago, after all.
Airline news dominated our top reads again for the month as more new carriers and routes entered the Australian market, and the Rex fallout and subsequent bailout and lack of payout continued. We also learned that this could the end of the arrival passenger card could finally be nigh. Let's hope so.
Finally, a massive congratulations to all the Australian Travel Industry Association NTIA finalists as we look forward to the big awards weekend in October.
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Karryon Luxury
As the luxury market continues its upward trajectory,?Karryon Luxury?continues to grow, too, with increased awareness, visitation, and subscribers to our LinkedIn channel, as well as a new weekly?LinkedIn newsletter?and weekly?email edits.
Here's our top 5 most-read Luxury stories of the month.
Out and About
August was a busy month for the event calendar, with the annual Virtuoso Travel Week in Las Vegas attracting many of the industry's glitterati. Collette's national?roadshow 23-event series?and the yearly?CLIA in Australasia?Cruise 360 extravaganza?marked the end of the month with aplomb.
Meanwhile, Karryon general manager Danielle Tuffield headed to Alice Springs to join Journey Beyond Rail 's Ghan 95th birthday celebrations. Later in August, Editor Mark Harada ventured to Ho Chi Minh for the ETG - Express Travel Group (Australia) Xchange weekend.
Want to stay in touch with the latest industry gatherings? Our Karryon Industry Event Calendar is the place to go for all the up-and-coming events and to advertise your events for free.
Karryon.com.au August Metrics
As tracked on the global standard, Similarweb rankings, we're proud to report that in August,?Karryon.com.au?blitzed last month's traffic numbers, notching up over 232,000 unique visits (+39% on the previous month) and 450,000 page views, retaining our ranking as #1 for all travel trade media publications in Australia.
Seventy-two per cent of Karryon's traffic came from mobile, and the average time spent on the site was over two and a half minutes.
Our reader demographic is now evenly split between the ages of 21 and 55, with over 85% based in Australia.
What's coming up?
Karryon Editor Mark Harada is packing his floral shorts for a trip to Cairns and?TravelManagers Australia's annual conference.?This year's event, which begins on 12 September,?features Olympic legend Cathy Freeman OAM and a host of other speakers.
Next week, I'll be heading to New York for the Skift Global Forum, which will be held from the 17th to the 19th at?The Glasshouse?in Manhattan. With a theme of?'Travel’s Great Renewal', I can't wait to share insights, connect with industry leaders, and spend some quality time in the Autumnal Big Apple. Drop me a note if you're attending, too, as I would love to see you there.
Karryon.com.au is an independently owned digital media publication and community focused on connecting the Australian travel industry. Based in Sydney, we are supported by our trusted partnerships with over 125 of the world's leading travel brands.