Online travel spend in January soared by 31% over the same peak booking month last year, new research shows.
The average basket value of holidays booked was £886, the highest recorded by the IMRG Capgemini e-Retail Sales Index since its launch in December 2008.
The year-on-year increase of 31% and represented a “massive” 173% rise on December 2010’s online sales.
Despite limited disposable income available, it appears that rather than blitzing the high street January sales, shoppers opted instead for seasonal discounts on furniture and early bookings of annual holidays, according to the research company.
Figures from the study reveal that shoppers spent a total of £5.1 billion online during January, equivalent to £83 per person – up by 21% on the same time last year.
Multi-channel retailers made the most of their brand and physical presence to secure a greater share of spending last month, the index shows.
IMRG information director Tina Spooner said: “Sales of travel were strong during January, particularly after the severe winter weather in December. Clearly, Britons are not tightening their belts where holidays are concerned, with the Index recording the highest average spend in this sector in over two years.”
Capgemini head of retail consulting and technology Chris Webster said: “January was a very interesting month. As expected we saw a strong growth in the index following a very weak start last year, but the jump in the travel sector and the gap between multi-channel and pure plays has come as quite a surprise.
“In regards to the surge in travel, it seems that the British consumer is looking ahead to sunnier times and taking full advantage of the big new year sales offered by the major travel operators.
“It remains to be seen whether the sector continues this growth in February following the recent announcement that Iceland’s second largest volcano, Bardarbunga, is on the verge of erupting.”
Phillip Rinn, advertising partnerships director at eBay Advertising, said: “The 31% year-on-year increase in online travel spend highlights just how much consumers are embracing online as a popular channel for holiday and travel-related purchases.
“Travel is one of the sectors of the UK economy that saw the earliest adoption of the internet as an initial point of purchase and this trend shows no sign of abating.
“From a marketing point of view, it’s therefore important that online has a proportionate share of the overall spend when brand marketers are allocating budgets.”
But Kelkoo managing director Bruce Fair cautioned: “Spending levels witnessed in January will be the exception rather than the norm for 2011, in what can only be described as the ‘last hurrah’ before the government’s austerity measures dampen consumer appetite to shop in the coming months.
“People were frantically heading online in an attempt to beat the VAT increase and grab a bargain in January. After such a bleak winter, it’s also no great surprise that the draw of sunnier climes was so appealing last month, resulting in a welcome holiday booking boom for the online travel industry.”