British holidaymakers are most worried about their wallets and the weather, according to the World Travel Market 2015 Industry Report.
Released today (Monday 2 November) by World Travel Market London – the leading global event for the travel industry – the report shows that affordability remains the main concern for 91% of Brits when booking a UK holiday.
And eight out of ten said the weather was important, making it the second most cited factor in UK holiday booking decisions.
A total of 1,036 consumers were quizzed for the survey, and were asked about the factors that determine their decisions about a holiday in the UK.
More than half (52%) said ‘affordability’ was very important, and a further 39% said it was quite important.
Weather was deemed very important by 39% and quite important by 43%.
Other factors affecting holiday booking decisions include terrorist threats (very important for 33%, quite important for 28%) and safety fears following recent plane incidents, such as the Germanwings crash (very important for 25%, quite important for a further 28%).
Exchange rates were very important for 24%, and quite important for 38%, while the experience at airport security desks was very important for 22%, and quite important for another 32%.
Other survey findings were further evidence of the staycation’s staying power, as the UK was named in the top three holiday destinations for 2015 – and remained in the top three when consumers considered 2016 holidays.
The poll reflects the success of firms selling UK holidays to the Brits, such as Hoseasons, which recently reported its fifth record summer in a row, thanks to more domestic trips – whether as a main holiday or in addition to an overseas break.
Barclays Business said its research showed a “thriving staycation economy is boosting small businesses around the country”, and estimated £22.5 billion is spent on UK staycations every year.
Its figures suggest that more than three quarters of UK adults (77%) have been on, or are planning a UK staycation.
VisitEngland reported that British consumers took 18.3 million holiday trips in England from January to June 2015 – up by 2% year-on-year – and expenditure increased by 6% to £4.4 billion.
World Travel Market London, Senior Director, Simon Press, said: “As we emerge from the recessionary mindset of recent years, it seems that the desire to book a bargain break is the ‘new norm’.
“Consumers may feel more confident as the economy picks up, but they are accustomed to value breaks, so affordability remains their top concern.
“However, increased consumer confidence may mean that more holidays are being booked overall, as people feel they can afford a UK break as well as an overseas trip.
“There has also been a great deal of investment in destinations, hotels and attractions across the UK, meaning staycations appeal to a wide range of holidaymakers seeking different activities and experiences.
“Sadly, there are negative factors weighing on people’s minds when considering holidays, and recent acts of terrorism and the migrant situation at Calais may be issues which make an overseas holiday less attractive.
-ENDS-
About World Travel Market London
WTM London, the leading global event for the travel industry, is the must-attend four-day business-to-business exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry.
Almost 51,500 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and international press, embark on ExCeL – London every November to network, negotiate and discover the latest industry opinion and trends at WTM.
WTM London, now in its 36th year, is the event where the travel industry conducts and concludes its deals. WTM 2014 will generate around £2.5 billion of travel industry contracts.
WTM London is part of Reed Travel Exhibition’s World Travel Market events, which also includes Arabian Travel Market, World Travel Market Latin America and World Travel Market Africa. www.wtmworld.com
World Travel Market Events
World Travel Market is comprised of the leading leisure travel events in the world; World Travel Market London, WTM Latin America in Sao Paulo, WTM Africa in Cape Town and Arabian Travel Market in Dubai.
New events for 2016 are WTM connect Asia and WTM connect China, which join WTM connect Ski and International Golf Travel Market. These unique one-to-one events are targeted at leisure and niche travel markets, allowing exhibitors to exclusively meet with elite hosted buyers.
The World Travel Market events are attended by the global travel and tourism industry’s senior executives to conduct business deals and discover the latest research, insight and opinion.
In 2014, the World Travel Market events facilitated around $7 billion in industry deals from negotiations between the more than 15,000 buyers, 9,500 exhibitors (1,500 main stand holders and 8,000 stand sharers) in attendance of its four events.
WTM is part of Reed travel Exhibitions, the leading events organizer in the travel industry, and is owned by the world’s leading events organiser Reed Exhibitions.
Reed Travel Exhibitions
Reed Travel Exhibitions (RTE) is the world’s leading provider of exhibitions in the travel and tourism industry. Its wide-ranging portfolio of events around the globe covers leisure travel, luxury travel, meetings, incentives and business travel, as well as golf, ski and spa travel.
RTE, which organises more than 22 events around the world, includes three divisions; World Travel Market, IBTM World and International Luxury Travel Market.
RTE is a business unit of Reed Exhibitions.
About Reed Exhibitions
Reed Exhibitions is the world’s leading events organiser, with over 500 events in 43 countries. In 2014 Reed brought together over seven million event participants from around the world generating billions of dollars in business. Today Reed events are held throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Asia Pacific and Africa and organised by 41 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 43 industry sectors with trade and consumer events. It is part of the RELX Group plc, a world-leading provider of information solutions for professional customers across industries.
Bad experiences like being stuck in Operation Stack when the M20 seizes up or stranded in an airport due to yet another French Air Traffic Controllers strike is definitely contributing to the increasing numbers who stay at home. However, as the article rightly says, budget considerations is still probably the main reason for the growth of staycations. It’s probably also the main contributor to the similar growth of house sitting in the UK. My wife and decided to try it out in March and went to look after a converted mill in Cornwall, a mile from the beach while the property owner went abroad. Essentially, it is a holiday with free accommodation but some added duties, the main one of which was looking after their Pointer puppy and feeding the poultry which seemed a small price for free eggs and free accommodation. It may not be for everyone and you do need to be a committed animal lover but for lots of people it can offer an even more affordable holiday than a staycation. We were so impressed, we’ve undertaken a few more and set up a website explaining what it entails and detailing some of our experiences: http://www.housesittingandpetsitting.com/ to show what terrific value it can be for bargain hunting Brits.