Summer is quickly approaching and many families will be in the process of planning their summer holidays. In 2009, British tourism saw many families choosing to go on holiday at home rather than abroad. This quickly became known as the 'staycation'. 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.
Many tourists went on short weekend breaks, choosing to stay in serviced apartments or hotels. A large proportion of those taking short weekend breaks tended to be young couples and groups visiting cities such as Bristol. 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. People that wanted something a bit more comfortable and had more expendable income decided to rent holiday cottages.
Holiday cottages have always been popular in the southern counties of the UK with areas such as Hampshire, Devon and Cornwall proving to be prime locations for tourists to visit. It is easy to see why as all of these areas have a wealth of local tourist attractions on offer. The New Forest in Hampshire is very popular, Exeter in Devon is a hotspot and all the surfers love Cornwall.
A large number of holiday cottage rental agents have stated that holiday cottages in Cornwall had a huge increase in the number of properties they rented last year. This is likely to be because places like Newquay receive regular young visitors each year after the end of GCSE and A level exams. This area of Cornwall has become well known for catering for young people looking to let off some steam after years of studying.
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 New Forest is also very close to other places that are interesting to visit. These are towns and cities such as Salisbury, which has a large cathedral and Bournemouth with it's beautiful golden sands.
All the signs are showing that 2010 is likely to be another successful year for the UK tourism industry. The slow improvements in the economy mean that people still don’t have vast amounts of money to spend and with an increase in strikes amongst airline and railway workers many travellers feel uncertain about heading abroad. These are all strong signs of the continued success of the ‘staycation’ in the UK.
Recent Comments