UK holidaymakers to vacation closer to home
Sixty-four percent of consumers said that they are likely to take trips in the UK in 2021 compared to 38 per cent pre-Covid-19
This is according to a study conducted by the National Caravan Council (NCC), which also determined that in the first months after the lockdown, 70 per cent of UK adults considered a holiday caravan-based UK break to be a socially acceptable activity, while 77 per cent considered motorhoming acceptable. What’s interesting is that these holiday types were regarded as much more acceptable than a city break to a major European centre like Paris or Madrid.
The NCC worked with founding member of the British Polling Council Populus, interviewing a random sample of 2,050 adults online between 22 April and 23 April 2020 to obtain the results of the survey.
The survey highlighted that after a significant number of people had their pre-August 2020 holiday plans disrupted by Covid-19, their desire to travel outside of the UK changed. For example, of those who were planning to travel to Europe, the survey reveals that only 42 per cent are now likely to take European trips before the end of December 2020; and of those planning non-European trips, just 21 per cent are likely to book. However, 66 per cent of consumers whose UK holidays plans had been impacted say they are likely to take UK holidays or short breaks in the second half of 2020, provided the restrictions are lifted before then.
NCC Director General, John Lally commented: “This insight is great news for our industry. Our holiday parks benefit from rural and coastal locations, away from densely populated urban areas. Units are usually located a minimum of five metres away from each other and enjoy their own services and facilities, which allows caravanners in their tourers, motorhomes or holiday caravans to be independent. Each one is separate with no shared doors or communal access areas. So, they are more suited to social distancing than many other types of holiday accommodation.”
Lastly, the NCC also revealed that the three top-ranked activities that those surveyed were looking forward to are: spending time in person with friends and family; having the freedom to go out without thinking about it; being able to go on holidays or short breaks.