US travel bookings rebound for August, boosting companies' revenue outlook
NEW YORK -U.S. travel companies including air carriers United Airlines and Southwest Airlines and hotel operators Hilton Worldwide and Wyndham Hotels have issued a collective sigh of relief as budget-conscious Americans have started booking travel again after many put vacation plans on pause earlier this year.
U.S. consumer sentiment rebounded in July from a shaky June, dinged by inflation, a weakening U.S. dollar, and President Donald Trump's trade war. That translated to a rise in spending, with travel companies seeing an uptick in bookings and now expecting stronger fourth-quarter revenue growth.
Companies that primarily service price-sensitive customers or the domestic U.S. market have higher expectations for August, with some seeing the end of the third quarter as an inflection point for what has otherwise been a rocky environment in 2025.
"Just as quickly as demand stepped down in early February due to this uncertainty, it appears that demand is now stepping up," United Airlines Chief Commercial Officer Andrew Nocella said on a post-earnings call, saying uncertainty has dropped in recent weeks after five months of weak demand.
Hotel operator Hilton echoed those sentiments, saying the freeze in corporate and business travel spending was finally "thawing."
"Given our overweighting to the domestic market, we would expect to be an outsized beneficiary of any recovery in the domestic demand environment," said Southwest CEO Robert Jordan on an investor call. The company said demand stabilized in the second quarter, and its recent bookings showed clear signs of improvement.
Most U.S. airline and hotel operators withdrew or cut their financial forecasts in April and May as President Trump's trade war threw the industry into its most uncertain time since the COVID-19 pandemic.
Still, there is lingering uncertainty over how the economy will fare in an ever-evolving tariff landscape and with inflation still above the U.S. Federal Reserve's desired 2% rate.
Super 8 motel operator Wyndham said that it was seeing more strength in revenue per available room, an important metric in the hospitality industry, in states like Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, and Missouri, indicating steady demand from blue-collar everyday travelers.
"In August, we'll see a stronger summer travel season," said CFO Michele Allen.
American Airlines said it expects revenue to improve sequentially in August and September. Alaska Air Group Chief Commercial Officer Andrew Harrison said closer-in bookings are coming in stronger, with "very good" activity in August.
However, the uptick in demand will be more evident for hotels and airlines in the fourth quarter.
For airlines, "a continuation of these demand trends is needed as a catalyst for airline stocks" as weak demand for main cabin seats has forced airlines to offer sales to fill planes, Andrew G. Didora, Bank of America equity research analyst, said in a note.
(Doyinsola Oladipo in New York; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)
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