The consolidated dollar value of airline tickets sold by U.S.-based travel agencies totaled a record $97.4 billion in 2019, according to the Airlines Reporting Corp., up 2.8 percent year over year. The average roundtrip ticket price for 2019 was $494.
Total passenger trips settled by ARC for U.S. travel agencies in 2019 rose 2.3 percent year over year to 302 million. Total U.S. domestic trips rose 2 percent while international passenger trips rose 2.85 percent. The number of trips handled by agencies with at least 70 percent self-reported corporate and government business rose 3.4 percent in 2019.
In 2019, electronic miscellaneous document sales, which include ancillary services like seat upgrades, rose 8.4 percent year over year to $84.6 million. EMD transactions rose by 8.6 percent year over year to 1.4 million.
December
For December, total ticket sales were $6.1 billion, up 10 percent year over year. Total passenger trips rose 9.6 percent to 19.3 million. U.S. domestic trips were up 9.4 percent and international trips were up 9.9 percent. The number of trips handled by agencies with at least 70 percent self-reported corporate and government business rose 10.8 percent year over year in 2019. EMD sales swelled by 43.8 percent to $6.8 million. EMD transactions surged 74.2 percent to 121,764.