Bookings to Asia-Pacific soared in May

SHANGHAI, China — More lenient visa policies are drawing more tourists to the Asia-Pacific region, allowing flight bookings to these countries to surpass prepandemic levels.

Online travel firm Trip.com on Wednesday said flight booking orders going to the region soared by 60 percent in May this year versus May 2019.

Trip.com chief operating officer Schubert Lou explained that this was driven mainly by emerging visa-free policies among Southeast Asian countries.

READ: Asia-Pacific air travel sustains momentum

“More and more countries are getting into that [visa-free] phase … And that has triggered tremendous growth,” Lou said during Trip.com’s Airline Global Conference here.

This was particularly evident in China, whose residents are now enjoying less strict policies after recently entering into visa exemption agreements with Thailand, Malaysia, and Singapore, according to Lou.

Trip.com data show that outbound flights from China are now 20 percent higher than 2019 levels.

Asia Pacific demand drives global growth

Lou said flight demand from Asia Pacific countries drove growth in the global market.

Citing data from the International Air Transport Association (IATA), he noted that average international flight demand grew by 15 percent in the first quarter of the year.

READ: Revenge travel still gaining momentum

Demand from tourists coming from the Asia Pacific region swelled by 45 percent, outpacing the industry average.

According to Lou, this was mostly due to increasing airline capacities to accommodate more tourists.

In the Philippines, for example, both Philippine Airlines and Cebu Pacific are aiming to grow their respective passenger capacities by expanding their fleet.