Emerging destinations of Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Turkey will account for more than 38% of UK package holidays sold by summer 2012.
The prediction comes from The Co-operative Travel, which claims popular destinations such as the Costa del Sol and Algarve which have seen a steady decline over recent years will continue to lose ground to up-and-coming resorts.
This year traditional Mediterranean resorts have seen a cumulative fall in bookings of 11.6% compared to an increase of 23.4% for Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Turkey – dubbed as the ‘Mett’ region by the agency.
If these current trends continue then the two areas will swap places by the end of 2011, with the Mett becoming the number one choice for package holidays.
The Co-operative Travel retail distribution director Trevor Davis said the trend had a lot to do with increased capacity to the Mett countries as well as the impact of the credit crunch.
“The growth of all-inclusive deals, which appeal to people wanting to fix the total cost of their holiday, has helped to increase demand for these fast-growing destinations,” he said.
“At the same time increased capacity and the high cost of the euro have both contributed to a significant rise in bookings.”
He added: “Mediterranean resorts still have a lot to offer UK holidaymakers. They are cheaper on average and offer shorter flight times.
“We’ll be watching booking trends as the season progresses, as well as monitoring sales for summer next year.
“However, if these trends continue, it will represent the biggest change in bookings patterns since the boom of the package holiday in the 1970s.”