Figures from Tui reveal the Germans are like the Brits, with a peak in bookings on ‘Sunshine Saturday’ – while Scandinavians and French prefer ‘Sunshine Sunday’.
Meanwhile, the Dutch, Belgians and Austrians tend to book on a Monday, having done their research over a weekend, says the European holiday giant.
With icy weather across the continent, Tui sees a “huge spike” in bookings each January as Europeans secure their summer holidays in the sun.
The busiest day of the year for holiday bookings in Germany and the UK was January 12 – dubbed Sunshine Saturday.
Tui said “tens of thousands of bookings” were made in Germany, involving more than one million German holidayseekers visiting its retail stores or website.
Booking in agencies remains the preferred option for Germans and Austrian but the proportion of online bookings is growing.
In Scandinavia, more than 80% of all bookings are made online, said Tui.
The top destinations for Europeans are Spain and Greece, while Turkey and Egypt are seeing significant growth.
Long-haul travel is becoming increasingly popular across Europe, with strong demand for the US, Mexico, the Caribbean and the Indian Ocean.
New for 2019 are Montenegro and Albania for Tui’s Nordic and Austrian markets, while Cyprus is gaining popularity in the German travel market.