Agents say clients’ EES anxiety ‘largely not matched by reality’

The trade has reported growing pre-travel concerns from customers about the EU’s Entry/ Exit System (EES) but said the vast majority of journeys had gone smoothly since the new scheme was fully introduced last week.

Consumer media outlets published stories about a flight from Milan Linate to Manchester at the weekend that left without more than 100 passengers because of queues linked to the EES.

But many agents said their clients had yet to face major issues with the system, suggesting most trips have been completed successfully.

Stephanie Slark, chief operating officer of The Travel Network Group, said: “Our members are saying they are hearing significantly higher levels of anxiety from customers who have yet to travel under the EES than from those who have already experienced it first‑hand.”

She added that the “vast majority” of journeys had gone smoothly.

ArrangeMY Escape general manager Jennifer Lynch also said clients yet to travel were more likely to raise concerns.

“The British media has a lot to play in this,” she said. “We’re getting a lot of questions. A lot of the [concerned] clients are slightly older and asking about whether they’ll have to queue and saying they don’t want to.”

She added: “It’s a headache having three [challenging] things at the same time: the EES, the Middle East conflict and the energy crisis.”

Other agents agreed headwinds continued to hamper trading, with Leicester‑based Barton‑Knott Travel managing director Tim Barton‑Knott saying: “I think we’re going to be fairly well down [on bookings] this year.”

He added: “It really is day by day at the moment.”

While travellers are continuing to book trips to eastern Mediterranean destinations, he said numbers had dropped, with some clients deciding to change their bookings to southern Spain or Portugal.

Outlining recent trends reported by members of The Travel Network Group, Slark said: “What we’re seeing is not a reduction in demand, but a shift in booking behaviour.

“Customers are being more cautious, taking longer to commit and, in many cases, booking closer to departure as they assess the situation and look for greater reassurance.”

Luke Petherbridge, director of public affairs at Abta, said the EES is “not yet operating fully consistently across all locations” and called for wider use of contingency measures.