With less than two weeks between the four-day Easter Weekend and the May Day Bank Holiday, many people only need to take nine days off work in order to enjoy a two and a half week break – and lots of savvy UK travellers are doing just that.
ABTA’s new findings reveal that nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of the population plan to take a holiday over the Easter period and one in four (26 per cent) of these are either taking annual leave themselves between Friday, April 19 and Monday, May 6, or are travelling with someone who is.
This year it is much easier to take a trip further afield, without eating too much into annual leave allowances. Travel companies report Florida, New York, Vietnam, Israel, the Maldives, Japan, Mexico and Dubai among some of the most favoured destinations over the Bank Holiday period.
With Easter being much later this year, it also means the weather in some destinations closer to home is likely to be warmer compared with Easter 2018. Popular destinations include Majorca, Turkey, mainland Spain, Egypt, Tunisia, Cyprus, Malta, Madeira and the Canary Islands.
Many people will also be spending their Bank Holidays in the UK – with the Lake District, Edinburgh, York, London, Llandudno, Bournemouth and Newquay all in demand.
It’s also expected that many people will use the Easter weekend to plan their Summer holiday, if they haven’t already done so, particularly as the Brexit extension gives holidaymakers certainty that all current arrangements for travel will remain as they are today. For example, Pet Passports will still be valid and, should they need it, UK travellers will still be able to access state medical care in EU destinations through their European Health Insurance Card.
There is still a lot of choice and availability of holidays this year, particularly in the Western Mediterranean. With renewed interest this year in Turkey, Egypt, Tunisia and Bulgaria, there are some excellent value breaks available in other favourite destinations such as the Canaries, Spain, Portugal, France, Greece and Italy. Travel companies are also reporting that cruises are proving a popular choice for a family holiday.
Mark Tanzer, Chief Executive of ABTA – The Travel Association said: “People only have so much time off they can take from work – so it’s no wonder the back-to-back Bank Holidays have appealed to so many this year.
“Not only do people have the opportunity for a longer break, with Easter being so much later this year many destinations that are closer to home will appeal as the weather is likely to be warmer than Easter 2018.
“If you haven’t arranged your holiday this year the Easter weekend is a good time to explore your options and book. Holidaymakers will find that there are some good value breaks available this Summer – the return of Turkey, Egypt and Tunisia is driving up competition in the Western Mediterranean and Bulgaria is also proving popular. The Brexit extension should give people total confidence to book their Summer holidays and travel arrangements, knowing that nothing will change regarding travel arrangements to the EU throughout the Summer.”
ABTA has updated its advice about travel and Brexit which can be found at abta.com/Brexit.
