ARC: January Air Sales and Trips Up, Airfare Steady

The number of total passenger trips settled in January increased nearly 46 percent year over year to 23.9 million, according to Airlines Reporting Corp. That figure includes a 70 percent increase in international trips and a nearly 34 percent increase in domestic trips. 

January ARC-accredited agency air tickets totaled $8.36 billion, a 128 percent increase from a year prior. Compared with December 2022, total sales were up 52 percent, total passenger trips increased 47 percent, U.S. domestic trips increased 50 percent, and international trips increased 44 percent, according to ARC.

Trips sold by U.S. travel agencies whose primary business model is managed corporate or government travel increased 90.8 percent year over year.

“January had the highest number of settled international trips and second-highest sales that we’ve seen in three years,” ARC chief commercial officer Steve Solomon said in a statement. “While there remains some uncertainty about the global economic outlook, we believe that 2023 represents the ‘next normal’ for the industry, and we can move beyond 2019 comparisons and focus on the future.”

The average U.S. round-trip air ticket price was $528 for January, up from $409 in January 2022, but down 0.6 percent decrease from December 2022, when it was $531.

January electronic miscellaneous document sales, which include fees for such ancillary products as upgraded seats and checked bags, increased 183 percent year over year to $20.4 million and were up about 30 percent from December’s $15.7 million. Ancillary transactions increased 142 percent year over year to nearly 334,000 and increased 38.2 percent from December 2022.

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