The report draws on Wego search and booking data from 1 January to 31 August 2026, compared with the same period in 2025. It examines destination demand, changes in air access and pricing, and traveller behaviour. This year’s edition also includes an analysis of travel patterns among Gulf nationals compared with the wider Gulf market.
Travel intent remained resilient during disruption
Wego’s data showed a divergence between travel intent and completed bookings during periods of operational disruption. Within a week of airspace restrictions and flight disruptions beginning in late February, flight bookings from the Gulf fell from above the 2025 average to 63% of the previous-year level, while search demand remained comparatively resilient
Bookings recovered to previous-year levels in early May before further disruption in June. Peak-summer travel patterns began to normalise from July. Searches and bookings therefore moved differently during the disruption period, with travellers continuing to search and plan trips while completed journeys were affected by operational conditions.
Ross Veitch, CEO and co-founder of Wego, said: “Travel demand in the Middle East proved far more resilient this year than the headlines suggested. When airspace closed, people did not stop planning trips, searches held steady even as bookings halved. What travellers lost was the ability to fly, not the intention to. Access, not appetite, sets the ceiling on destination performance in this region.
“The second shift matters just as much. The Gulf market and Gulf nationals are two different audiences with two different maps, and a single corridor between Saudi Arabia and Egypt now carries almost a fifth of all travel abroad by Gulf nationals. The destinations that plan around that distinction will win share from those still treating the region as one audience.”
Egypt remains the leading destination
Despite changes during 2026, the top of Wego’s destination ranking remained stable. Egypt ranked first for a twelfth consecutive year, while India and Saudi Arabia retained second and third place respectively. Further down the ranking, Nepal recorded the largest climb, rising eight places. China, Vietnam, Sudan and Kenya each moved up seven positions. Over the past decade, Pakistan has moved from twenty-first to fourth place in the ranking. Changes in air access were associated with several of the largest gains. China’s rise coincided with expanded visa-free access for GCC nationals, while Vietnam benefited from additional direct connectivity between the Gulf and Hanoi.
Destination performance varied during travel disruption
The impact of travel disruption in 2026 varied by destination and region. Search demand for Azerbaijan declined 39% year on year, while Georgia recorded a 29% decline. Search demand for Spain declined by 3%, despite the destination being considerably farther from the Gulf. Across Europe, search demand declined 20%. The Indian Subcontinent was the fastest-growing region in Wego’s analysis, increasing 19% year on year, led by Pakistan at 34%. Within MENA, Saudi Arabia remained comparatively resilient, with search demand declining 15.8%, against larger declines across several neighbouring markets. Egypt maintained its position as the region’s most searched international destination for a twelfth consecutive year.
Gulf nationals show different travel patterns
For the first time, Wego’s annual report separates the wider Gulf travel market, which includes the region’s large expatriate population, from the travel patterns of GCC nationals based on passport nationality. The analysis found that the Saudi Arabia–Egypt corridor accounted for 19.6% of international travel by Gulf nationals in Wego’s dataset. Travel patterns also varied by nationality. Among Saudi travellers included in Wego’s analysis, 56.8% of flights were domestic. Of their international journeys, 84% extended beyond the GCC.
Airfares normalised as domestic hotel bookings increased
Average airfare increased from March and peaked in June at 23% above the previous-year level. By August, average airfare had returned to within approximately 1% of the previous year. Hotel booking patterns moved differently. Domestic hotel bookings increased 37% year on year, while international hotel bookings declined 9%. Overall hotel bookings increased 17%. The share of international flight searches for one-way journeys also changed during the disruption. One-way searches rose from 57% before the disruption to 76% in March, before moving closer to earlier levels by August.
Outlook for the remainder of 2026 and 2027
Wego said connectivity, ease of access and travel costs are expected to remain among the factors influencing destination performance through the remainder of 2026 and into 2027. The company’s analysis also identifies differences between the travel behaviour of Gulf nationals and the wider resident population, alongside changes in search and booking activity linked to air access, pricing and travel conditions. Wego’s search and booking data covers destination demand and travel behaviour across the Middle East during a period marked by changes in air access, pricing and booking patterns.
Tags: Ross Veitch, Wego Egypt
