Spain Takes Top Spot as a 2016 Holiday Destination

The travel industry knows the 9th of January as “Sunshine Saturday” for a reason. Brits have put Christmas and New Years behind them and start looking for a holiday to relax and escape the cold.

Online voucher code website My Voucher Codes decided to do some research to see where Brits plan to spend their summers, the kind of holiday they want, and the best deals available.

Research by ABTA and Tui shows that one million people were expected to visit a First Choice or Thomson shop or website on the 9th of January, with 37,000 customers expected to go through with their bookings within 24 hours.

Tablet and mobile bookings were expected to be even higher than usual, with an estimated 40% of bookings made on these devices. In the 12 months leading up to August in 2015, 77% of Brits said that they had taken a holiday either abroad or at home, and 51% said they would spend the same on their holiday this year as they did in 2015.

This year, My Voucher Codes surveyed 1,256 British adults to find out more. The first question was “Are you wanted to book a holiday in summer 2016”, with a huge 70% responding that yes they would like to book a summer holiday, 18% are still on the fence, and 12% aren’t planning to go away.

When asked whether they would like to go abroad or stay in the UK, 62% of the people surveyed said they would rather go abroad, 19% said they would stay in the UK, and 19% were still making up their minds.

Then came the big question for those who wanted to travel abroad, and when asked where they would like to go, Spain took the top spot on the list. The USA came in at number 2, followed by Greece, and South America. In spot number 5 was a Cruise, which is a great way to see multiple destinations and relax, and this was followed by France Italy, Australia and Canada. The 10th spot (and the only one from Asia) was Japan.

Founder of My Voucher Codes, Mark Pearson spoke about Sunshine Saturday, saying that the dreary January weather, lull after Christmas and the fact that some people have trouble coping with bad weather or have Seasonal Affective Disorder make it unsurprising that people are booking summer holidays to give themselves something to look forward to.

This is obviously a busy time for travel agents, who will have scoped out the best possible deals for their clients. For people who are still paying off bills after Christmas, you’ll be surprised to learn that accommodation, cruises and group tours can all usually be paid off after you’ve paid an upfront deposit. Flights can sometimes be held for a couple of days but you should be prepared to pay for these in full as there may be some incredible deals on offer.

For more information check out this article.