A gloomy economy, government calls to holiday at home and events like the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee… will all this have an effect on how you choose to holiday this year, or will you be doing what you always do?
So what’s your response to a deluge of gloomy economic news?
When a newsreader’s droning on about rising unemployment and the collapse of Greek economy, do you cancel all spending plans immediately, or look for a cheap flight to somewhere sunny to escape it all?
I’ve always been in the second camp, as the thought of going a year without a foreign holiday strikes fear into my soul. And it appears Which? members are similar – they aren’t changing their plans either.
How are holidays changing?
The majority (58%) of the 1,190 Which? members we asked about their holiday plans for 2012 are intending to carry on as normal this year – either taking a holiday abroad or staying at home – regardless of the economy.
It might seem like good news for the travel industry, and testament to British travellers’ resilience, but the other side of the coin is that 42% are planning to do something different this year to save costs. A lot are still committed to going abroad though – a third of that 42% are only changing plans by booking flights earlier to get cheaper deals.
But a quarter were planning to stay in the UK rather than go overseas, 24% were going to reduce the number of holidays they took. Another 19% were looking at cheaper accommodation, and 17% at taking a shorter holiday.
Home or away?
Given that the government is spending £4 million on an advertising campaign urging us to holiday at home this year to enjoy the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee (and put our holiday cash towards the deficit reduction effort), the proportion staying in the UK may rise even further.
But I won’t be joining them. I might be taking one foreign jaunt rather than the two or three I’d have done some years ago, but there’s no question I’ll be needing my passport. I might give Greece a try. I hear they need the money even more than we do, and if they’re back to the drachma my spending money might go a long way.
Will you be joining me, staying at home like the government wants you to, or tweaking your foreign holiday plans to keep costs down?
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