CHANGE OF HEART AS ALMOST 20% OF UK TRAVELLERS STAY CLOSER TO HOME

The impact of the cost-of-living crisis is being felt in every area of life across the UK and travel is no different. New figures from Quotezone.co.uk shows travellers have had a change of heart when it comes to their holiday destinations, with an 18% decline in demand for travel to countries outside of Europe in 2022, and an 18% spike in those headed for Europe - compared to pre-pandemic levels in 2019. 

2022 was initially a year when most people were hoping to get back to some form of normality and start travelling as freely and frequently as before the pandemic.  

A recent UK wide survey by Quotezone.co.uk found that when asked about New Year's resolutions, the third most popular answer was to ‘travel more’.  Suggesting the switch to European holidays is perhaps not an unwillingness to travel but the effects of the cost-of-living crisis, keeping journeys shorter and hopefully more affordable. 

However, campaign group Which? compared prices of 13,000 package holidays and found deals to Spain, Turkey and Italy have jumped by 20% or more since last summer.* 

This comes at a time when Ryanair has forecasted a rush of US and Asian tourists boosting demand in Europe due to the relative strength of the US dollar and the end of most border restrictions** - creating further demand for these sought after summer holidays.  

Greg Wilson, CEO of Quotezone.co.uk, comments: “Initially we would have expected 2022 to be the year when travel around the globe began to return to pre-pandemic levels, with the easing of restrictions and the threat of coronavirus significantly decreasing but this recent research suggests financial factors rather than attitudes could be deterring people from travelling too far. 

“As the summer months approach and the cost-of-living crisis continues to impact residents in the UK, it is important travellers find competitive travel insurance that fully protects their needs.” 

TRAVEL TIPS TO PROTECT YOUR HOLIDAY 

1 – Take out insurance at the same time as the holiday is purchased – this can help protect against issues in the lead up to the trip 

2 – If it’s a package holiday, check it’s ABTA protected, the ABTA logo should appear on the booking reference.   

3 – Also check the trip is ATOL protected or ATOL Flight Plus protected - meaning customers won’t be left stranded abroad if the tour operator or airline goes bust.  

4 – Booking with credit cards can give extra protection - if the trip was cancelled or the operator went bust, the credit card company are normally liable as the retailer, and so should refund the payment.  

Quotezone.co.uk helps around 3 million users every year find savings on household bills and essentials, plus niche products such as travel insurance, courier insurance or van insurance.