Canadian consumer sentiment towards air travel is improving, according to research conducted by Expedia Group in partnership with the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC), with data pointing to an optimistic outlook ahead.

Bolstered by IATA’s view that there is “light at the end of the tunnel,” fuelled largely by the North American domestic market, the Expedia/ARC research suggests the tide has turned in Canada with a 210% year-over-year growth in air searches between 2020 and 2021.

Data reveals that Toronto and Vancouver top the ‘most searched for destinations’ list (20%) by Canadian travellers, trailed by Calgary and Montreal (10%). The intent to travel domestically is on an upward swing in Canada, with most of these Canadian flights (90%) planned for Q4 2021 – half of which are slated for October.

While domestic travel has been the driver fueling the air industry’s recovery, Expedia Group and ARC data points to the return of international travel as well. Expedia Group Canadian search data showed that in comparison to 2020, 2021 has seen more interest in international destinations, including London, Delhi, and Las Vegas. Over the last six months, there has been a consistent climb in the percentage of international short haul flights with August 2021 seeing a 66% increase since February this year, according to ARC.

The research also reveals key traveller purchasing behaviours:

• Premium flight pricing is not rebounding as quickly as economy flight pricing. In 2021, premium tickets were 193% more expensive than economy tickets compared with 2020 where they were 246% more expensive and 2019, at 260% more expensive. So, for travellers hunting for a good deal, 2021 is the year for premium air travel.

• Airfares booked by Canadian travellers for the first half of 2021 have shown a return to pre-pandemic levels, with the latter half of Q2 into Q3 tracking lower than pre-pandemic levels (and significantly lower than mid-pandemic, 2020, levels). June 2021 shows a 12.9% decrease, July shows a 11.9% decrease and August 2021 shows a 6.4% decrease compared to their respective months in 2019. This reveals that while the airfare pricing levels have dropped steadily, August indicates that Q4 2021 prices are beginning to balance out.

“Expedia Group has been attuned to the momentum of rising travel confidence, and as more and more people are searching for flights on our sites in Q4 into 2022, we want to ensure that our airline partners are prepared as much as they can be to understand and capture this new demand,” said Julie Kyse, VP, Global Air Partnerships with Expedia Group.