Spring has sprung and Summer is just around the corner so many British families are putting together their holiday plans for this year. In the summer of 2009 we saw the rise of what became known as the ‘staycation’ with families opting for holidays at home instead of abroad. An increase in the number of tourists visiting UK beaches took the British tourist board by suprise because of the economic downturn. The ‘staycation’ started initially with many people staying at home and travelling to local tourist attractions and beaches but this eventually spread out to a range of different accommodation.
Short weekend breaks became very popular with people staying in hotels and serviced apartments. Many young couples and groups tended to take breaks in cities like Bristol so they could enjoy the nightlife, restaurants and shopping on offer. There are plenty of places to stay in Bristol that meet the needs of younger people but many families wanted something a bit different when it came to a holiday.
There were a couple of accommodation trends in 2009 that became noticable as it became clear that budget was having an effect on holiday maker’s decisions. A large number of caravan and mobile home owners traveled to campsites in the South of England because it was cheaper. Renting holiday cottages was the trend that appeared among those that had a greater budget to spend on their holiday.
Counties in the south of England like Cornwall, Hampshire and Devon are among the more popular locations for people renting self catering holiday cottages. Each of these individual counties has something to offer. Hampshire has Portsmouth, Southampton and the New Forest. Devon has great beaches and moors while Cornwall is well known for being popular among surfers.
A large number of holiday cottage rental agents have stated that cottages in Cornwall had a huge increase in the number of properties they rented last year. The rise in popularity of Cornwall holiday cottages can largely be attributed to the number of young people visiting the region after finishing their exams. This is because areas like Newquay cater for younger people with the wide range of extreme sports and night life available to them.
The other more popular destination was the New Forest. It is thought that holiday cottages in the New Forest saw the increase as a result of the number of families visiting the area. The appeal of the New Forest is likely to be because of the wide variety of outdoor activities, wildlife and beautiful scenery it has to offer. The location is also close enough to a number of interesting destinations that are easy to visit by car. A short car journey will allow you to visit the beaches of Bournemouth or the medieval city of Salisbury.
All the signs are showing that 2010 is likely to be another successful year for the UK tourism industry. Many people are still preferring to put off traveling abroad especially with the threat of strike action from airline staff and many people simply can’t afford it as the UK economy is still recovering from the economic down turn. All of these signs point towards another success story for UK tourism and the continued rise of the UK ‘staycation’ in 2010.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.