Travel companies who are flying at the start of 2025

5 min read

2025 ins and outs? Travellers are set to embrace trends like solo adventures, blended work-and-leisure trips, and sustainable tourism, the role of online marketing has never been more critical. Leading travel companies are leveraging cutting-edge digital strategies to stand out in a crowded market, using everything from AI-powered tools to targeted campaigns that capture traveller intent. In this blog, we spotlight the top 10 travel companies excelling in online marketing performance.

What is the ASK BOSCO® Index Score?

The ASK BOSCO® Index is a powerful benchmarking tool within our platform that measures your overall digital performance. It evaluates key factors such as SEO, paid search, website health, and other marketing efforts to give you a clear picture of your online impact.

Unlike traditional metrics that focus solely on marketing spend, the ASK BOSCO® Index offers a comprehensive analysis. It combines insights from both paid and organic traffic, drawing on reliable third-party data to provide an accurate and holistic view of your digital presence.

How is the score Interpreted?

The ASK BOSCO® Index score ranges from 0 to 1000. On average, brands and retailers score around 500. A higher score indicates stronger online performance, making it a valuable metric for tracking progress. Think of it as your digital marketing “credit score”—the closer to 1000, the more optimized and effective your online strategy is!

What does the travel industry look like?

As of January 2025, the travel industry is starting to see signs of improvement, driven by the recovery of global travel demand and evolving traveller preferences. International tourist arrivals have surpassed pre-pandemic levels, fuelled by demand, and eased restrictions. Solo travel, authentic local experiences, and sustainability are key trends shaping traveller behaviour. Technological integration, such as real-time translation and seamless booking platforms, enhances convenience when travelling.

Despite economic challenges, travellers are spending more, with millennials and Gen Z leading the trend. Airlines and hotels show strong performance, though over-tourism and environmental concerns persist, prompting sustainability measures. The industry’s recovery reflects resilience and a focus on innovation and sustainability.

Who topped the league table?

Kuoni

In the last quarter of 2024, Kuoni initiated a significant rebranding effort to broaden its appeal and modernize its image. This transformation, set to be fully implemented by January 2025, includes a refreshed logo featuring a globe, a new colour palette with a standout “wow” yellow, and a focus on lifestyle-oriented imagery. The rebrand aims to position Kuoni as a contemporary travel company that offers personalized holiday experiences tailored to individual lifestyles and reasons for travel.

As part of this rebranding, Kuoni launched the “It’s not where, it’s why” campaign on December 20, 2024. Developed in collaboration with the creative agency Special London, the campaign emphasizes the motivations behind travel rather than specific destinations. It features narratives such as a young girl discovering flamingos in Kenya and a mother and son bonding during a white-water rafting adventure. The campaign is being broadcast nationally across television, radio, digital platforms, and outdoor media, and is scheduled to run until February 17, 2025.

Additionally, Kuoni has introduced a “Sale Away” range of holiday offers and is conducting a “Kuoni Giveaway” for travel agents from December 30, 2024, to February 17, 2025, featuring weekly prizes to engage and incentivize the trade.

These strategic marketing initiatives reflect Kuoni’s commitment to evolving its brand identity and expanding its customer base by focusing on the personal and emotional reasons people choose to travel.

Exodus Travels

In the last quarter of 2024, Exodus Adventure Travels implemented several marketing initiatives to commemorate its 50th anniversary and engage travellers for the upcoming year.

50th anniversary celebrations and special departures

To mark its half-century milestone, Exodus introduced 50 special departures for 2024 across its most popular tours. These exclusive trips include additional experiences designed to enhance the adventure, such as a lunch at the Shepherd’s Hut along the Path of the Gods on the “Walking the Amalfi Coast” tour and a free sauna session in a traditional wood burning Rantasauna during the “Finnish Wilderness Week.” Participants in these special departures also receive a limited edition 50th Anniversary kit bag and partake in on-trip celebrations.

New year promotions

In anticipation of the New Year, Exodus announced its “More Extraordinary with Exodus in 2025” sale, offering travellers special deals on selected trips for the upcoming year. This promotion aims to encourage early bookings and attract new customers by providing savings on a variety of adventure travel experiences.

Brand refresh

Leading up to its 50th anniversary, Exodus underwent a brand refresh, including a new name—Exodus Adventure Travels—and an updated logo. Aiming to present a modern, forward-thinking image to its audience.

Content marketing and travel insights

Exodus continued to engage its audience through content marketing by publishing articles that highlight travel trends and top-rated trips. For instance, they released insights on emerging adventure destinations for 2025, showcasing locations like Albania, Uzbekistan, and Bhutan to inspire travellers seeking new experiences.

Findings from our analysis

There were some interesting findings from our ASK BOSCO® Index individual category scoring for travel. These individual categories evaluate key factors such as SEO, paid search, website health, and other marketing efforts. In the paid search category, Audley Travel have the best overall paid search performance with a score of 808 but are fourth in the league table. Exodus had the best website health in terms of speed and performance. When it came to online engagement, Kuoni had the most engagement across both SEO and PPC categories.

Want to know more?

If you’d like to know more about the ASK BOSCO® competitor benchmarking feature and find out where your brand sits on our league table rankings, simply get in touch with us at team@askbosco.com – we’d love to hear from you.

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