Around most of the world, the average booking window, which measures the average number of days between guests making reservations and arriving, is returning to 2019 levels. Last year, travelers waited later to plan their trips and the booking window was shorter than normal. This was likely fueled by uncertainty around travel restrictions, COVID caseloads, and even work-from-home schedules. As a result, property managers were able to count on last-minute bookings. In the first quarter of 2022, almost every country had an average booking window that was longer than 2021, but still shorter than 2019. The second quarter is still developing, but booking windows are currently longer than 2019 for most countries, perhaps due to slowdowns in booking activity caused by the Ukrainian war, increased fuel prices, and rising costs of air travel.
