Advito report charts trends in business travel costs

Intercontinental business fares continue to climb, especially between North America, Europe and Asia.

But domestic economy fares in the US are falling, driven by low-cost carrier competition and weakening demand.

This is according to Advito’s quarterly Travel Price Index outlining global trends across business travel.

Key takeaways from the report include:

In Europe, domestic and regional fares are rising in economy, which accounts for most European air traffic.
A reduction in domestic capacity to key countries – Germany, France, UK – is primarily driven by the development of high-speed rail
Intercontinental airfares are rising due to increased corporate travel and interest in booking premium cabins, driving fare increases in business
Delays in aircraft deliveries and maintenance issues are leading to enforced capacity restrictions, impacting airline growth
Geopolitical tensions have an impact on intercontinental airline networks and can contribute to fare rises, especially from/to Europe, the Middle East and Asia
There are mixed trends in domestic and regional fares in economy cabins. In the US, economic concerns in the domestic market are affecting demand
A highly-dynamic Asian market has seen double digit increase in seat capacity, more availability of lower fares and a reduction in average fares
Overall, airfares from Africa to almost all regions worldwide are increasing year-over-year
Gulf carriers are taking advantage of the reduction of operations from European carriers and the Indian market boom, increasing fares from the Middle East.

Most European countries are seeing decreases in the best available rate (BAR) quarter-over-quarter and soft increases year over year
As we move into the second quarter of 2025, the easing of leisure and business travel demand is driving moderate price increases in some markets
Occupancy levels have increased year on year in most regions except Asia, according to STR benchmark data
STR reports that revenue per available room (RevPar) is increasing across all regions. South America, Western and Northern Europe have the lowest RevPar
Japan, India, Thailand, Hong Kong and Malaysia are showing strong increases in BAR compared to 2024
Most markets in Asia have increased 2025 occupancy levels to date, except for China
In Africa, markets with substantial rate increases include Cape Town, Johannesburg, Sandton and Essaouira along with most markets in Kenya, Namibia, Nigeria, Uganda and Zambia
Most markets in the Middle East have increased 2025 occupancy levels to date except for Qatar.

Rail fares are showing a significant upward trend for UK and Benelux countries with a more moderate trend in Southern Europe
Customers looking for more sustainable travel have strengthened rail demand with many corporates making concerted efforts to shift travellers off planes and onto trains for short-haul journeys
The attraction for high-speed rail travel is leading to a sharp increase in fares for the top international routes, i.e. London-Paris, Brussels-London
In North America, the Northeast Corridor with Acela high speed train serves over 700,000 passengers daily. This presents a unique opportunity for a shift from air to rail travel in these markets
Rail fares in China are stabilising.This time last year, rail fares in China had increased by over 20% to address rising costs and heavy debts from the construction of the high-speed rail system two decades ago.

Car rental rates are expected to continue rising in Q2 at the same pace as previous quarters
Car rental companies are optimising fleet and yield management, maintaining a conservatively planned fleet size, ensuring customer demand and vehicle availability are balanced
In North America, car rental suppliers are in the midst of a fleet rotation that includes a significant selloff of vehicles, expected to be completed by the end of 2025
Rentable vehicles in the US are decreasing by 5% year-over-year, helping maintain high fares in the market.

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