Luxair estimates that the volume of bookings will remain stable between the end of 2020 and the end of 2021. (Photo: Romain Gamba/Maison Moderne)

Luxair estimates that the volume of bookings will remain stable between the end of 2020 and the end of 2021. (Photo: Romain Gamba/Maison Moderne)

As the Christmas holidays kick off this Friday evening, so do the holiday departures. Between the booking trends and the race for tests, we zoomed in on the big rush.

The suitcases are almost packed as the Christmas school holidays begin this Friday evening in Luxembourg: many residents are heading off abroad, with a marked preference for Spain, Cape Verde and Egypt this year, Luxair and LuxairTours tell Delano’s sister publication Paperjam.

Spain is favoured because of its good weather--especially in the Canary Islands - but also because of its easy access conditions: a simple form to fill in with no PCR test required for those who have been vaccinated. “Customers do not hesitate to book. However, destinations that are tightening their entry rules(such as Italy) are not enjoying the same fate,” adds the tour operator.

Travel boosts testing

“We are seeing a sharp rise in demand linked to the Christmas and New Year holidays,” says Jean-Luc Dourson, director of Bionext Lab. The laboratory also points to the introduction of CovidCheck coupled with the epidemic rebound to explain the increase in activity.

To cope with this, the company has recruited 20 new staff and has just introduced an administrative pre-registration system for patients requesting a covid test (PCR or antigenic) without a prescription or appointment. This aims to reduce the waiting time for patients.

Laboratoires Réunis, for its part, has introduced a pre-appointment system at its four drive-in and walk-in stations in the country. Their maximum capacity of 2,500 daily PCR tests should most likely be reached by the end of this week or next, says managing director Stéphane Tholl. “The number of PCR tests carried out in December has increased by more than 50% compared to November,” added the manager.

Between Monday and Tuesday, the number of PCR tests performed in Luxembourg doubled to 5,920. On Wednesday, 5,509 nasopharyngeal swabs were taken, according to data from the ministry of health.

Stable reservations

It must be said that a negative PCR test is required for access to many destinations around the world. At Travel Group Luxembourg, which runs the agencies We Love to Travel and Voyages Emile Weber, the list of popular destinations also includes the United States--whose borders were recently reopened to European tourists--the United Arab Emirates--which is currently hosting the 2020 World Expo--as well as the Dominican Republic and the Maldives, according to Michael Gloor, managing director of Travel Group Luxembourg.

The manager notes that bookings are very short term, but admits to already having “ a certain volume of bookings for 2022”. For 2021, Travel Group Luxembourg estimates business volume at 55% of that of 2019, while for year-end bookings, volume is down 30% year-on-year.

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For Luxair and LuxairTours, “the number of bookings has stabilised compared to the same periods in previous years”, although a “slight hesitation” to book was observed at the end of November and beginning of December.

Undoubtedly, the emergence of the Omicron variant has put a damper on long-distance travel plans. Luxair is also seeing a shift towards Portugal and France, destinations where many residents can be reunited with their loved ones during the holiday season. More simplicity, but also an irresistible desire for a change of scenery seems to characterise this period.

This story was first published in French on . It has been translated and edited for Delano.