After the Government’s decision to allow international leisure travel again, research by Easyjet has revealed that the average Briton hasn’t been on holiday for more than 630 days. The nation now aims to make up for the lost time by booking holidays abroad at any cost.
The majority of Britons said that the money they have been saving during lockdown will now spend it on a well-deserved holiday.
On average, Britons have saved £5000 and stored 33 days of annual leave.
Given that they were not able to travel, go to restaurants or pubs, they explained that they have saved more in the last year than any other time in their lives.
61 percent of Britons also said that they are planning to make this holiday “extra especial” meaning they plan a spending splurge on trips abroad.
In fact, 52 percent of those saving for a holiday are planning to go all out this year and spend more than usual on their summer break.
Some go even further, as 36 percent said they are planning to splurge their entire lockdown savings on holidays in the sun following over a year of not being able to travel abroad.
The majority have rolled at least five days of annual leave from 2020 to this year due to the pandemic.
They have stored up to 33 days on annual leave, being the average annual leave entitlement in the UK 28 days.
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That means Britons this year have at least 5 extra days to use on breaks away.
UK holidaymakers aim to make up for lost time by exploring new places.
After leisure travel was permitted on May 17 and Portugal was announced to be on the “green list”, Easyjet put over 105,000 extra seats on sale to the country.
The airline’s first foreign holiday flight in five months took off to Portugal a few days ago with many travelling abroad for the first time in two years.
Data from the Easyjet also showed that some of the most popular destinations for Britons to jet off to this summer are Faro, Lisbon, Madeira, Porto, Gibraltar or Malta.
Spanish destinations like Alicante, Palma Mallorca or Malaga are also on the list.
From Monday, May 24, UK holidaymakers can finally fly to the Mediterranean country with no restrictions.
Spain announced this week that it will be allowing Britons to enter the country for “non-essential” travel with no need to provide a Covid-19 test to enter or quarantine.
The research also revealed that most people said being in lockdown has made them crave new holiday experiences, with a third saying they have already booked a summer holiday abroad.
But what are Britons planning to spend their money on?
61 percent said they will be spending their money in restaurants, 38 percent on excursions and trips, 30 percent on cocktails around the pool and 11 percent on adventure sports.
The majority of parents that were surveyed – 70 percent – said they can not wait to drop the kids at the kids club so that they can lay down by the pool in peace.
EasyJet CEO, Johan Lundgren, said: “We know how much people value travel and can see the pent up demand every time restrictions are lifted.
“This research shows just how much of a priority travel is after such a long period where it has been out of bounds.
“Brits cannot wait to get away on a sun filled holiday and have been saving hard to make their holiday a trip to remember.
“We look forward to welcoming customers on board for a well-deserved getaway and remain hopeful that the Government will add many more European countries onto the Green list and allow safe travel this summer.”
