ABTA, The Travel Association estimates that more than 4.5 million people from the UK will be holidaying overseas over the August Bank Holiday1.
This follows a busy summer of international travel which saw many travel companies reporting a return to levels seen before the pandemic. Destinations offering sun, sea and sand have proved as popular as ever, with many holidaymakers heading to mainland Spain, the Balearics and the Canary Islands as well as Bulgaria, Portugal, Turkey, Morocco and Greece.
Even though there has been huge enthusiasm for overseas trips this year, the rising cost of living is having a significant impact on people’s holiday habits.
Earlier this year, research conducted by ABTA showed holidaymakers considering a range of tactics to stretch their holiday budgets, including taking a holiday out of the peak season to get a cheaper deal (56%) cutting back on other non-essential costs like eating, going to the cinema or buying clothes (54%), booking a last-minute holiday (47%), and putting money saved during the pandemic towards the cost of their trip (35%)2.
Graeme Buck, ABTA’s Director of Communications, said:
“We’ve seen consistently high demand for foreign holidays this year, with many of our travel agent and tour operator members even reporting record-breaking sales. The pandemic paused lots of holiday plans over the last few years, so it’s clear that people see getting away this year as an absolute priority and some are even prepared to dip into their pandemic savings pots to make this happen.
“For those who haven’t yet managed to get away, we always advise booking with an ABTA travel agent or tour operator to help your budget go further. Their expert knowledge means they can easily advise which destinations and style of trip will offer you the best value for money and they can often get you a better price than if you’d booked independently.”
