Late bookers can be tricky but the rewards are there

Rock Me Amadeus by Falco, Boys by Sabrina, Life is Life by Opus. 

For those of you who can remember these massive hits, you might also know that they all have something in common. Any guesses? 

Yes, that’s right, they were all featured on BBC Radio 2’s breakfast show last week as part of a feature on 1980s package holiday hits! Basically, they are all songs that were massive in Europe, being played constantly at hotels and the local discotheques, but had it not been for us Brits going away on package holidays, would never have made it big here in the UK.   

Looking back now, maybe these were some of the less desirable items we imported after our annual week in the sun, but hearing these tunes again last week put me in the right mood for days in the shop, filled with enquiries for last-minute deals, as we enjoy a very busy start to August. 

Whole gamut 

Although we are getting a number of those “I want all-inclusive, two weeks, day flights, family of four, with slides and kids’ clubs and a spa for the adults, for £1,000” enquiries, we’re also finding that not everyone wants a cheapie.  

We’re seeing August and September departure dates with some customers spending over £600 each for a week self-catering. I even had one regular who was happy to pay £2k for a two-week break in Benidorm on their own.  

And talking of the last minute, we have identified a new group of customers that we like to call the 529ers. You know the ones – they pop their head in at 5.29pm and ask what time we close. Then when we tell them 5.30pm, they say, “Ah great, we’re just in time then”, before going on to ask what we have available for tomorrow. Just keep smiling, Col, and do your best.