Domestic flights in Saudi Arabia increased by 20.31% during Eid al-Fitr
Wego, the number 1 travel app and the largest online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), has observed a 20.31 percent year-on-year rise in domestic bookings in Saudi Arabia during Eid al Fitr this year compared to the same period last year. Over 3 million searches to Riyadh were conducted on Wego’s platform this year, and the company saw a 19.63 percent increase in domestic travel bookings during Eid al Fitr when compared to the previous month.
According to the data gathered by Wego, Jeddah, Riyadh, and Dammam are at the top of the list of the most sought-after domestic destinations during Eid al Fitr holidays. These cities generally welcome the bulk of Saudi domestic travelers all year round, but they also hosted special events and festivities in celebration of Eid al Fitr this year, drawing even more visitors from across the Kingdom during this time period.
Trailing the top 3 cities are Abha, Medina, Jizan, Tabuk, Taif, Al Qassim, and Najran. Wego believes the list indicates a mix of leisure and homecoming trips during Eid holidays. Wego also noted that solo travelers made up the majority of domestic travelers in Saudi Arabia during Eid al Fitr travel season, followed by couples and families.
Wego also noted that most of the travelers made their bookings around 2-7 days ahead of their travel dates.
Domestic travel continued growth
Wego noticed a similar increase in domestic travel bookings during other holidays, such as New Year and Founding Day this year, with month-on-month (MoM) percentage increases in bookings during those times reaching up to 56.69 percent.
The growth in domestic travel interest during holiday seasons showcases how Saudi travelers often prefer local destinations to spend their days off. Earlier this year, the Saudi Ministry of Tourism announced that the Kingdom welcomed a record-breaking 100 million visitors, more than half of which were domestic travelers.
Wego expects a continued boost in Saudi domestic travel, as the Kingdom has expressed its commitment to growing the tourism industry through mega projects, international events, and infrastructure revamp.
Top tips on finding better deals
As per the proprietary pricing data, Wego acknowledged the challenges of finding good airfare and hotel deals during peak travel seasons like Eid al Fitr. As travel demands grow close to a major holiday, prices tend to go up and availability goes down.
Travel experts at Wego maintained that Saudis can still be savvy travelers by following some tried-and-true tips. Picking weekdays instead of weekends for travel dates, hunting for tickets early, and keeping an eye out for seasonal discounts are some of the suggestions shared by experts at Wego.
“Flight prices fluctuate—what you see now may still go down significantly within hours. Wego app notifies users via email and pop-up notifications when there’s a price drop for a route or hotel stay they recently browsed for,” Mamoun Hmedan, Chief Business Officer of Wego stated.
He also noted “that the Wego app not only provides inspiration for where to go, but also opportunities to grab better deals.”