Bookaway Group’s latest data reveals that Mexico, a popular tourist destination for the North American and European markets, experienced a surge in ground transport bookings during the high season of June to August this year.

The company argues this is a trend indicative of the recovery of the travel industry as confidence in bookings returns.

According to the latest data, which tracks Mexico travel undertaken by customers from the United States and key European markets such as the UK, France, Germany and Spain, there was a 569 per cent increase in tickets sold between August 2021 and August 2022, with August marking the final month of the summer season.

Bookings also gained traction over the season, with tickets sold increasing by 103 per cent between June and August, more than doubling the 48 per cent increase in tickets sold between June and August 2021.

Though Mexico opened its borders to non-essential travellers from the US in November 2021, the US Centres for Disease Control & Prevention removed the requirement for a negative lateral flow test before entering (or re-entering) the United States at a later date, in June 2022.

This eased the process for citizens returning from holiday in Mexico, precluding the increase in travel over the 2022 high season.

Interestingly, Bookaway Group’s data indicates that couples have driven this high season surge in the country.

Solo travellers accounted for 19 per cent of bookings across ground transport (e.g. buses, ferries, trains, minivans), and groups of 3 or more for 28 per cent of bookings.

Couples came out on top, constituting 54 per cent of bookings between June 2022 and August 2022.

Across the ten most popular destinations in the country, the mean stay for a group of any size was 4.7 days.

The longest average stay came from Tulum, at 6.9 days, with Tulum an exceedingly popular destination for those seeking package beach and resort holidays combined with the natural and historical attractions of the world’s second-largest coral reef and Maya ruins.

Though North America and Europe are the two largest outgoing markets to Mexico, data reveals that the top destinations vary between these continents - although a combination of islands and traditional beach and resort destinations remains consistent.

Among US travellers, Cancun was the most popular destination, a well-known location famous for its beautiful beaches, numerous resorts, and vibrant nightlife.
Cancun was followed by Cozumel and Tulum.

For European travellers, Holbox was the most popular stop on their ground transport routes, followed by Chiquila, with Cancun, the States’ most popular destination, in third place.

Noam Toister, chief executive and co-founder of Bookaway Group, said: “This significant growth signals that travel to Mexico has bloomed this calendar year in comparison to the more gradual recovery of travel during the high season of 2021.

“This is very promising and, with so many people unable to travel during the pandemic, it is rewarding to see the passion for travel reignite at both mainland and island destinations throughout Mexico.”