Lufthansa Group Sees Booking and Demand Increase for USA Flights

In many parts of the world, more and more people are being vaccinated. The number of infections is falling as travel restrictions are being lifted in many countries.

German entry rules were also adjusted just a few days ago. For example, quarantine rules no longer apply to people who can present a negative COVID-19 test when returning from a risk area. Now accepted are PCR tests valid for 72 hours and antigen tests valid for 48 hours.

As a result, demand for Lufthansa Group airline tickets is increasing significantly.

For example, in the past two weeks there has been much more demand for summer flights to the USA than in previous months. Connections to New York, Miami and Los Angeles have had booking increases of up to 300 percent. Therefore, the airlines of the Lufthansa Group are further increasing the number of flights to and from the USA as of June and are once again flying to attractive destinations such as Orlando and Atlanta.

Harry Hohmeister, member of the Executive Board of Deutsche Lufthansa AG said: "People are craving for vacation and cultural exchange, as well as reuniting with their families, friends and business partners – and, in this context, especially for flights between Germany and the USA. Because of the great significance of transatlantic air travel for the global economy, we now need a clear perspective on how travel be-tween the USA and Europe can return on a larger scale. Lower number of infections and a rising rate of vaccinations allow for a cautious increase in transatlantic air trav-el. Since certain European countries have already made corresponding announcements, Germany also needs a plan for opening up transatlantic air travel.”

Demand for vacation destinations up significantly

Popular are also classic European holiday destinations such as Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal. For these Mediterranean countries, Lufthansa and Eurowings have already received three times the number of bookings in the past seven days compared to earlier weeks. On some routes to Spain, such as Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza or Barcelona, bookings were even higher than in 2019. Flights to the Balearic Islands and the Greek islands are particularly in demand. Eurowings has therefore added more than 500 additional flights to Palma de Mallorca, Ibiza or Greece.

Lufthansa will also expand its flight schedule on short notice if demand continues to increase. With more than 100 vacation destinations, Lufthansa and Eurowings are offering more vacation destinations this summer than ever before. Furthermore, Lufthansa for the first time is flying non-stop from Germany to twelve dream destinations in Greece, including the country’s beautiful islands.

Flights to leading leisure long-haul destinations such as Male (Maldives), Cancún (Mexico) and Punta Cana (Dominican Republic) have already been showing a strong increase in demand for weeks.

Full flexibility and booking security

Anyone planning a trip now can do so trouble-free with Lufthansa Group airlines: full flexibility in rebooking options continues to apply. All airline fares can continue to be rebooked free of charge as often as desired until July 31, if the rebooking is also made by then. After that, passengers can rebook their ticket one more time free of charge. The newly booked flight can be valid up to one year for the entire ticket. The route can also be changed depending on availability without restrictions.

Hygiene concept offers safety

A comprehensive hygiene protection concept, which the Lufthansa Group introduced at the beginning of the pandemic, continues to ensure safe flying. Both product and procedures along the entire travel chain have been adapted to our customers’ wishes and official requirements. On-board and ground procedures have been modified to reduce direct contacts. In addition, Lufthansa Group aircraft are equipped with HEPA filters, which clean the cabin air of impurities such as dust, bacteria and viruses, mak-ing it comparable to filters used in hospital operating room. In this regard, the Lufthansa Group was one of the first airline groups worldwide to introduce mandatory masks on board.

Finally, Lufthansa and Eurowings also support their passengers in fulfilling testing obligations and provide easy access to partner laboratories worldwide.