Leading online travel agencies Germany 2019-2020

Booking.com, founded in Amsterdam, is the leading online travel agency among Germans as of 2020, with almost 33 percent of all German travel bookings on the internet being completed on the website. Booking.com was followed by the German travel portal ab-in-den-urlaub.de and the German version of U.S. Expedia. While 2020 was the year in which the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit the world, leading to severe travel restrictions or even temporary bans, summer had offered some openings to Germans and made trips possible in Europe.

Online travel bookings rising fast

In recent years, growing numbers of German holidaymakers have booked their trips online. Almost 26.3 million had done so in 2020. With the rise of internet-based services in general across industries and sectors, organizing travel online, especially booking plane tickets and accommodation, is becoming more and more widespread. Most online travel agencies also offer searches and booking options for car rentals and taxis. In general, when booking with a travel agency, the majority of consumers paid attention to the prices on offer.

Digital booking habits

In 2020, the total revenue of travel agencies in Germany plummeted to 10.2 billion euros, compared to 26.4 billion euros the year before. With a travel ban during spring 2020 leading to a factual absence of bookings or travelers being unable to follow through with a previous booking, agencies were suffering significantly. Even after the travel ban had been lifted, continuing restrictions or individual entry bans in other countries also negatively impacted Germans' willingness to travel and therefore, book. Still, online bookings continued to be the more popular option for those organizing holidays.