The ‘Future of Travel’ report, which also took in responses from travellers in the US, Europe, and Asia, found that despite the financial insecurity that has descended as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, Brits are setting aside a big budget for their holidays, with the average allocated spend sitting at €2,155, €500 higher than respondents based in Europe. Seventy-three per cent of Brits say that they will be taking a trip of some description, while 15 per cent suggest that they will take a holiday outside Europe, 35 per cent say that they will travel within Europe, and 42 per cent said that they preferred to restrict themselves to a domestic trip.

Thirty-five per cent of UK respondents said that they would travel for a week and 34 per cent said that they would travel with one other person. The majority (59 per cent) said that they would be taking their own car, 34 per cent said that they would travel by plane, 11 per cent said that they would take the train and only seven per cent said that they would take the bus. In terms of accommodation, 40 per cent said that they planned to stay at a hotel, 31 per cent indicated a private rental of some kind, and 11 per cent opted for a guest house.

Encouragingly, travel protection is on these travellers’ minds, with 74 per cent saying that they planned to purchase travel insurance; of these, 97 per cent said that they would want to be covered for any emergency medical and/or hospital expenses, 93 per cent said they wanted cover for delays and cancellations, and 91 per cent said that lost or damaged luggage and personal items would be their primary concern.

“Though there is still a lot of uncertainty,” said Francine Abgrall, Head of Travel at Europ Assistance Group, “the results of the survey were positive, with more than half of the respondents indicating they would be taking a holiday in 2020. [This indicates] a strong rebound for the industry in the medium and long term.”