Weeks of rain and storms battering the UK have prompted consumers into booking summer holidays early, with some travel companies reporting sales up by more than 10% on this time last year.
The estimate from Abta today comes as the association unveiled a new hub on its website for holidaymakers – abta.com/earlybird – with advice on booking early and an interactive web tool with information on which destinations to visit at different times of the year.
Ata members will also be promoting their services and deals on Twitter using the hashtag #ABTAearlybird, for a week from Monday (January 20) – giving thousands of consumers real time information on holiday offers.
Research conducted at the end of last summer shows an increasing number of people said they had booked their holiday further in advance that year compared to 2012.
Across all holidays, more than a quarter (27%) of consumers said they booked further in advance, half (53%) booked at the same time and one in five (20%) said they had left it later, booking closer to the departure date.
Younger travellers (16-24 year olds) are the most likely to book in advance, almost half (48%) booked their holiday further in advance in 2013, and early booking was also favoured by people with young families, 41% of whom booked further in advance.
Better deals and cheaper prices is the main motivator for booking early, over six in ten (62%) cited this as their reason. Abta members have reported that early booking offers such as free child places and low deposit schemes have proved popular.
Almost half (49%) booked in advance for better availability, while better choice (33%) and getting time off work (26%) were also popular reasons.
Association chief executive Mark Tanzer said: “We are cautiously optimistic about holiday bookings in 2014 so it’s very encouraging to see a strong start to the year and we are also pleased that more consumers appear to understand why it’s important to book early.
“But with one in five people leaving it later to book in 2013, it’s important that we get the message out about the benefits of booking early: the travel industry traditionally launches some of its best deals at this time of year and holidaymakers who book early can take advantage of these, as well as getting greater choice and availability.
“These benefits are even more pronounced for families where availability of child places for the summer months can fill up quickly.”
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