COMPARED to travellers worldwide, those from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Australia and Russia arrange for their holidays furthest in advance, according to a study by Agoda.
The Travel Smart study, which analysed millions of bookings made on Agoda, revealed that Hong Kong-based travellers booked their accommodations the earliest, on average 42 days before a trip, or six weeks before check-in.
Meanwhile, Taiwanese, Australians and Russians are tied for second place, booking on average 40 days in advance before a trip.
On the other end of the spectrum are travellers from the UAE, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia, who book on average 12, 15 and 17 days, respectively, in advance.
Holidaymakers from the UK book, on average, 34 days in advance. This is 10 days over the global average of 24 days. China-based travellers trail right behind their UK counterparts at 32 days.
“Those early birds may be onto something,” said Errol Cooke, vice president partner services at Agoda.
“Travellers who book early tend to have a better selection of properties, and a better selection of room types. There’s always a risk that plans could change but many properties have free cancellation now, so travellers likely won’t be out of pocket if they have to.”
