The group, the UK’s largest OTA, said average booking values in the year to 30 September came in up 31% on 2019, driven by a greater mix of premium and long-haul business, as well as an uptick in revenue generated by its B2B brands Classic Collection Holidays and Classic Package Holidays.

Group gross profit for the year came in at £96.1 million, £3 million short of the £99.1 million it took in its 2019 full-year but significantly up on the £23.3 million it recorded this time last year.

On the Beach said the emergence of the Omicron variant late last year impacted the first four months of the group’s full year, up until government travel restrictions were eased in January 2022.

Growth across premium, long-haul and B2B has continued in the past six weeks said On the Beach on Thursday (8 December) despite the sector heading into its traditionally quieter pre-Christmas trading period.

Moreover, the group said it went into its 2023 full-year (year to 30 September 2023) with a "healthier overall forward order book" than it did in the months preceding the pandemic.

However, founder and chief executive Simon Cooper – who will stand down as the company’s chief executive next year and hand over to Shaun Morton – said visibility for the UK’s outbound travel sector "remained unclear" owing to a host of macroeconomic challenges, notably the cost of living crisis.