Canadians' wanderlust a boon to travel industry

Canadians with the travel bug have been spending more on getaway deals with the help of tour operators and travel agents, according to a study by Statistics Canada.

Travel arrangement services reported a relatively strong year in 2005, earning $8.9 billion in operating revenues, up 10.5 per cent over the previous year, the study showed.

Statistics Canada said Tuesdaythe industry regained much of the momentum it lost after facing difficulties such as the threat of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and the war in Iraqin 2003.

The agency looked at two industries travel agents who put together package deals for a variety of places and tour operators who offer trips to specific destinations.

In terms of revenue growth, the travel agency industry experienced a record year in 2005 with a 6.1 per cent year-over-year increase, as agencies generated $1.6 billion in operating revenues.

However, before-tax operating profit margins decreased slightly to 5.2 per cent, down from 5.8 per cent in 2004, as operating expenses grew by 6.7 per cent.

Rosy report for tour operators

The tour operator industry continued to be the largest of the travel arrangement services industries and accounted for about four-fifths of total operating revenues in 2005.

Canadian tour operators earned $7 billion in operating revenues in 2005, an increase of 11.6 per cent over the previous year. At the same time, operating expenses for tour operators have increased by 12.2 per cent to $6.9 billion, keeping profit margins for this industry a relatively thin 1.1 per cent.

TheInternational Travel Survey indicated that Canadians spent nearly $19 billion on overnight trips to the United States in 2005,an 8.5 per cent increase over the previous year. Canadians made nearly 21.1 million overnight trips abroad, making it the highest year on record since 1992 and the third highest ever for travel outside the country.

About nine out of every 10 dollars earned by travel arrangers came from sales to clients travelling outside the country, according to thestudy.