He attributed this slow-down to the on-going war in Iraq, the outbreak of the SARS virus as well as the European Union referendum and the general election.
Mr Degiorgio said many people decided to skip last year’s trip abroad because of instability, both locally as well as internationally, so this year they made it a point to spend their holidays overseas.
Another reason for the sharp increase in the number of Maltese travelling abroad this year was the slashed prices on packages. If last year there were 20 destinations for which local tour operators could offer low prices, this year there are double as much, he said.
He said the price decreases drastically when the tour operators take the risk and invest in chartered flights. It is only with this kind of investment and foresight that tour operators can offer two nights in Paris at Lm62 per person, he said. This offer for a long weekend in Paris has proved to be popular since all seats on the chartered jumbo have been booked, he said.
“Widespread low prices increase demand. Venice is another good example. Lm109 for five days in Venice is a competitive price so you create a lot of demand for the package. In fact, seats are selling like hot cheesecakes,” he said.
Mr Degiorgio said that feedback his company got from other tour operators showed that they had all experienced a similar surge in demand from Maltese wishing to spend time abroad.
Asked about the most popular destinations among the Maltese holiday makers, Mr Degiorgio said Tunisia, the United Kingdom, Italy, Switzerland and France are the top five destinations for the Maltese. Other countries such as Germany and Austria are still strong and the number of Maltese people visiting America is once again on the increase, following the 11 September terrorism attacks.
France remains one of the most popular destinations for the Maltese due to Disneyland and Lourdes, with the latter attracting around 3,000 Maltese tourists annually. On the other hand, in recent years, Spain as a holiday destination lost popularity among the Maltese.
Mr Degiorgio said this summer Maltese people were more adventurous, with a shift to central and eastern European countries such as Poland, Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia and Slovakia. Prague was also very popular but has registered a decline when compared to recent years.
When asked about cruises, Mr Degiorgio said these proved to be very popular among the Maltese. The Italian vessel Melody, the Spanish vessel Flamenco and the Sea Wing, a British cruise liner, have carried many Maltese people this year. He said nearly 5,000 Maltese have travelled on these cruise liners this year.
“It is a healthy sector and addictive too because when on a cruise you don’t have any worries such as which restaurant to go to for lunch and dinner and other things which may be on one’s mind when on holiday. A cruise is good value for money. On the Flamenco, children under 16 don’t pay while children under 18 on the Melody go for free,” he said.