SpendTrend: Festive Season Edition 2025/26

This edition analyses Discovery Bank client transaction behaviour over December 2025 and early January 2026, highlighting how clients travelled and how they spent over the festive season.

Key insights on spending over the 2025/26 holiday period and comparisons with last year

• Discovery Bank travellers went truly global: Clients ushered in the New Year from 128 countries, flying more than 300 million kilometres - equivalent to 7,500 trips around the world!
• Flight prices dropped meaningfully compared to last year: Across the most popular routes, average fares were up to 20% lower than the previous festive period, making December getaways even more accessible - especially when paired with Vitality Travel discounts.
• December remains peak spending season: Average card spend was 20% higher in December against the rest of the year, and 5% higher than December 2024.
• Holiday treats, but with responsible choices: Total monthly spend at major ice cream chains was +37% higher in December compared with the rest of the year. Clients showed sensible behaviour with metered taxi and ride-hailing spend +23% higher in December compared with the rest of the year.
• From festive season to 'back-to-life' mode: As the calendar flips to January, alcohol spend eases off and stationery spend rises sharply, reflecting New Year resolutions, work resets, and school prep coming through strongly in post-festive shopping behaviour.

Vitality Travellers were here, there and everywhere on over 19,000 flights over the holiday period

Discovery Bank clients travelled extensively over the festive season, with domestic trips concentrated on the Johannesburg-Durban-Cape Town 'triangle', and international travel spanning key destinations including the UAE, Australia, the UK, the USA and Mauritius. Vitality Travel discounts helped make peak-season travel more accessible - while the travel flows below show how demand built across December.

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