Ride the Waves

A new data-driven report by InsureMyTrip, the largest travel insurance comparison site, and Cruise Critic, the largest cruise community, reveals that more travelers prefer to book a cruise during late January than any other time during the year. Data shows online searches for cruise deals typically spikes in early January.

In addition to a new buying cycle expected for 2019, cruisers can expect the following trends:

Technology Enhancements — Travelers can look forward to improved internet capabilities and technologies being rolled out across brands like Princess, Carnival, Royal Caribbean, Celebrity, Norwegian and MSC in the upcoming year.

Longer Time In Port, Less At Sea — More cruise lines will provide additional time in port and less time at sea, giving cruisers more time to explore destinations. Also, many cruise lines are planning port enhancements and upgrades.

More Personalized Experiences — Expect more cabin upgrades and perks for suite passengers, like personal concierges and private dining.

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British? . . . Beach holiday please

THE global tourism industry has been flourishing over the past few decades and vacation or holiday travel is one of the key sectors in this industry. Travelers seem to choose beach holidays more often, which makes the beach holidays segment more popular than most of the others in vacation travel domain. More than any other reasons, holidaying currently seems to be one of the top reasons to travel, besides business tours. Leading holidaymakers in the United Kingdom have been offering several vacation plans for those who wish to travel abroad but evident rise in the number of ‘staycations’ within the UK since the past few years is expected to provide a decent boost to the growth of holidays market in UK.

According to a report by Market Research Hub (MRH), a majority of UK consumers choose to travel with their friends and family just to relax, experiencing the sun and beach. This tendency will play a key role in strengthening the potential of UK’s beach holiday industry. Italy, Spain, and France have been topping the list of consumers’ choices over the years. However, holidaymakers are now deliberately promoting local, nearby beaches, which could present a range of more convenient and affordable choices to those who are planning a beach holiday in coming years.

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"Best Time to Book" holiday report from TripAdvisor

TRIPADVISOR has released its "Best Time to Book" Holiday report, revealing the least expensive times to book hotels in popular global destinations for the December and New Year's Eve holidays. Best times to book vary from country to country but here is a sample of what the report found.

• Book U.S. hotels starting in November.

• Travelers should shop for European deals beginning in March but can find consistent value by booking after mid-November.

• Asia sees best savings from September on.

• Caribbean hotel prices remain relatively steady all year.

• Central America rates are flat and climb slightly towards the end of year.

• Middle East hotels prices drop starting in November. 

• Start booking your holiday stays in November for Africa.

• South America values available starting in September until the end of the year. 

• Book South Pacific from mid-July on to the end of December. 

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Study reveals UK family holiday trends

THE average British family holiday involves a three-hour journey, four tantrums, and two days of rain, research by self-catering agency Beach Retreats reveals. 

The study, which compiled the experiences of 2,000 families, also found that children ask ‘Are we there yet?’ five times and parents get only two lie-ins. The average British holiday also sees 81 photos snapped.

Parents will normally get less than two-and-a-half hours to themselves on most days but will manage three quiet drinks over the holiday.

Andrew Easton, business manager for Beach Retreats said: ‘Around half of British families will be taking a staycation in 2016 and the appeal of the British beach holiday stronger than ever. Documenting your beach holiday with photos, social uploads, and selfies is now a typical part of a beach holiday, but it’s great to see that outdoor activities, discovering the beach, are still so important to families.’

Traditional British beach behaviours are still as popular as ever, with building sandcastles (69%), digging holes in the sand (61%), and exploring rock pools (58%) listed as the most popular things to do beside the seaside.

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Rugby World Cup drives tourism to UK

ON the back of a report showing the #Rugby World Cup 2015 was the most economically-successful ever, figures from VisitBritain show double-digit growth in the number of visits from Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa from October to December last year. 

Visits from New Zealand to the UK increased by 52 percent to more than 40,000 with the Kiwis spending more than £63 million during this period, more than twice as much as in 2014. Visits and spend from Australia both increased by 20 percent to 219,000 and £254 million respectively compared to the same period in 2014. And visits from South Africa were up by 30 per cent to 58,000 with spend up six percent to £77 million.

VisitBritain director Patricia Yates said: ‘Britain shone in the global spotlight as the host of the 2015 Rugby World Cup and it’s great to see the huge growth in visits and spend from some of the world’s top rugby-watching nations including Australia, our fourth most valuable market. Almost half a million international visitors attended matches and events across 11 host cities throughout the seven-week tournament which gave these areas global exposure, introducing new places to many overseas visitors.’

‘The Economic Impact of Rugby World Cup 2015’ report published Ernst and Young showed that the tournament generated almost £2.3 billion in economic output. The 406,000 international visitors for the RWC each stayed for 14 days in the UK, spending £958 million, at an average of £2,400 per person.

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Travel fraud cost UK holidaymakers £11.5 million in 2015

THE ASSOCIATION OF BRITISH TRAVEL AGENTS (ABTA), the City of London Police, and Get Safe Online have joined forces to warn consumers about the dangers posed by holiday booking fraud. #Scams are more frequent due to the rise of online bookings 

Findings in a report by the City of London Police’s National Fraud Intelligence Bureau reveal the scale of reported crime and expose tactics used by fraudsters who stole £11.5 million from holidaymakers and other travellers in 2015.

According to the report, there has been a rise of 425% in the amount reported lost to travel fraudsters – up to £11.5 million in 2015 from £2.2 million in 2014 – although part of the increase is likely to be due to crime previously going unreported.

The most common fraud type relates to the sale of airline tickets, but there has also been a large increase in the number of owner accounts being hacked into on popular sharing accommodation websites.

Losses for individuals can be substantial, with the average loss being almost £3,000. Almost half of victims (44%) said the fraud had also had a significant adverse impact on their health.

There are distinct spikes of reported fraud in the summer months and in December, indicating fraudsters are targeting holidaymakers and people booking last-minute flights home for Christmas. The majority of those who are defrauded pay by methods such as bank transfer or cash with no means of getting their money back.

The most common types are:

Holiday accommodation – Fraudsters are making full use of the internet to con holidaymakers by setting up fake websites, hacking into legitimate accounts and posting fake adverts on websites and social media.

Airline tickets – where a customer believes they are booking a flight and receives a fake ticket or pays for a ticket that never turns up. In 2015, flights to Nigeria, India, and Pakistan were particularly targeted.

Sports and religious trips – a popular target for fraud due to limited availability of tickets and consequently higher prices. It is anticipated that in 2016, both the European Football Championships in France and the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro will attract fraudsters.

Timeshares and holiday clubs – The sums involved with this form of fraud are particularly high, with victims losing between £9,000 and £35,000 each.

The City of London Police, ABTA, and Get Safe Online have published advice on how to avoid becoming a victim of holiday booking fraud – and on how victims should go about reporting it. This advice includes:

Stay safe online:  Check that the web address is legitimate and has not been altered by slight changes to a domain name – such as going from .co.uk to .org

Do your research: Don’t rely on one review – do a thorough online search to check the company’s credentials. If a company is defrauding people there is a good chance that consumers will post details of their experiences, and warnings about the company.

Look for the logo: Check whether the company is a member of a recognized trade body such as ABTA. If you have any doubts, you can verify membership of ABTA online, at www.abta.com.

Pay safe: Never pay directly into an owner’s bank account. Paying by direct bank transfer is like paying by cash – the money is very difficult to trace and is not refundable. Wherever possible, pay by credit card (or a debit card that offers protection).

Check paperwork: Study receipts, invoices, and terms and conditions, and be very wary of any companies that don’t provide any at all. When booking through a holiday club or timeshare, get the contract vetted by a solicitor before signing up.

Use your instincts: If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Report it: Victims should contact Action Fraud on 0300 123 2040 or register via www.actionfraud.police.uk.


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Up in the air . . .

THE LATEST annual report by AirlineRatings.com – which monitors the safety records of 407 carriers – confirms that Qantas has once again topped the list, having not had a serious safety incident in 2015. The Australian carrier’s record since the dawn of the jet era has been fatality-free.

Of the 407 airlines surveyed, 148 have the top seven-star safety ranking, with Air New Zealand, Alaska Airlines, ANA, American Airlines, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, Etihad Airways, EVA Air, Finnair, Hawaiian Airlines, Japan Airlines, KLM, Lufthansa, SAS, Singapore Airlines, SWISS, United Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia completing the top 20.

The report added, however, that almost 50 airlines have a rating of three stars or less, and there are 10 airlines with only one star, including carriers from Indonesia, Nepal, and Surinam.

‘Our top safest airlines are always at the forefront of safety innovation, operational excellence, and the launching of new, more advanced aircraft,’ said AirlineRatings.com’s editor, Geoffrey Thomas. ‘These airlines are always at the forefront for excellence in the safety space. However, there is no question among the editors that Qantas remains a stand-out in safety enhancements and best practice.’

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Travel trends report highlights 12 destinations to watch

The 2016 travel trends report by the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) has flagged up the ‘12 Destinations to watch’. The report, released in association with the UK’s Foreign & Commonwealth Office (FCO) also highlights emerging and key trends in travel which will influence holiday habits in the year ahead.

It suggests that almost a quarter (23%) of the population are expecting to spend more on their holidays, up slightly from 20% last year. 

Almost one in five people (18%) say they will travel to a country they have never been to before in 2016, compared to 9% who said this last year. 

ABTA has identified its ‘12 #Destinations to watch’ for #2016; places that are expected to capture the public’s imagination. These are: 

• Abu Dhabi 
• Canada 
• China – the Silk Road 
• France 
• Hawaii 
• Iceland
• Iran 
• Naples and Apulia (Italy) 
• Peru 
• Poland 
• Queensland, Australia
• Sri Lanka

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UK ‘more welcoming’ to foreign tourists

THE PERCENTAGE of international visitors who said they felt extremely welcome in Britain has more than doubled in the last five years, according to a new report by national tourism agency VisitBritain.  

The ‘Britain’s welcome to overseas visitors’ report, based on a survey of more than 5,000 visitors as they left the UK, found that 42% said they felt extremely welcome, compared to 30% in 2012 and 19% in 2009.

Overall, 89% of visitors surveyed said they felt extremely or very welcome in Britain. Of those, 93% said they would also be extremely or very likely to recommend visiting Britain to family and friends. Danes and Canadians felt the most welcome, according to the survey, followed by visitors from Sweden, India, and the US.

VisitBritain’s report also noted that personal recommendations scored top in influencing or inspiring people where to go on holiday, and were considered more influential than travel brochures, special offers, or advertising. In some markets, including four of Britain’s top markets – the US, Canada, Spain, and Australia – it was given as the most important factor from a choice of 22.

The first nine months of 2015 have broken previous records for inbound tourism numbers, with more than 27 million visits to Britain from January to September, a 3% increase compared to the same period last year.

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Record year for Wiltshire tourism

HEADLINE figures in a report on the economic impact of Wiltshire’s visitor economy show that 2014 was a record year for tourism in the county. 

The report – by The South West Research Company – shows that in 2014 the number of visitors, value of tourism spend, and tourism’s economic impact reached record levels

Peter Wragg, VisitWiltshire’s Chairman and Swindon & Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership Board member, says: ‘This report is hugely encouraging and gives further evidence of how important tourism is to our overall economy. Since 2011 Swindon and Wiltshire’s total tourism business turnover and gross value added has increased by 30%. Wiltshire’s visitor economy is worth £1.5 billion per annum and supports more than 28,000 jobs.”

At #VisitWiltshire, CEO David Andrews added: ‘We are particularly pleased to see such strong growth in overnight stays, which are up 5%. Growth across the county reached a record 19.9 million visitors in 2014, and there is evidence that we’re extending the visitor season.’

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No complaints … we’re British!

ALMOST a third of Brits (31%) believe general holiday standards have dropped in the last 20 years, according to a report published by consumer holiday watchdog, HolidayTravelWatch. But the report also found that despite this alarming trend, more than a fifth of respondents (22%) still do not complain.

The inaugural Holiday Standards Report investigated holiday standards over the last two decades and Brits’ opinions and experiences of travelling abroad.

Survey respondents cited essential factors such as cleanliness (45%), food standards (39%), and customer service (30%) as three main disappointments.

After the terrorist attacks in Tunisia and Turkey, a quarter of respondents said they believed safety standards in resorts had declined.

It might be unsurprising, then, that more than four in ten British families now holiday less than they did two decades ago. Although money problems were given as the most common reason cited (64%), most consumers noted dissatisfaction with cost versus experience. More than four in ten believe value-for-money isn’t what it was two decades ago.

However, more than a fifth of respondents do not complain when faced with below-par standards. Almost a third (30%) say they aren’t confident they will get a satisfactory resolution, while 27% say a lack of confidence stops them complaining. . Almost a fifth (19%) say they have experienced intimidation of one kind or another when they have tried to complain while on holiday.

Frank Brehany, consumer director at HolidayTravelWatch says: ‘We have heard for years about holidaymakers being intimidated when making complaints. Threats have ranged from verbal aggression, rooms being searched for “evidence”, being shadowed by security staff, to physical threats or threats of being arrested. But make that complaint! If you are threatened you should speak to the UK embassy in the country you are visiting; they can advise you on how to deal with any issues.’

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Malta tops for tourism investment, but …

THE Maltese government does the most to invest in and promote travel and tourism, according to a World Economic Forum report.

Its 2015 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness report benchmarked 141 economies across 90 indicators to find out which countries are making the best use of their travel and tourism industries to maximize economic development and competitiveness.

#Malta is closely followed by Mauritius, Cyprus, and Singapore in prioritizing travel and tourism, with Iceland, Spain, the Dominican Republic, the Seychelles, Estonia, and Barbados completing the top 10.

But Malta ranks at 106th in price competitiveness. It also ranks poorly with regards its natural resources (115th , its cultural resources and business travel (90th), and its environmental sustainability (64th).

It ranked 40th in providing the best business environment, 25th in safety and security, 17th in health and hygiene, 60th in human resources and the labour market, 40th in international openness, 37th in air transport infrastructure, 22nd in ground and port infrastructure, and 24th in tourist service infrastructure.

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Portugal tops for car hire costs in Europe

Which is Europe’s most expensive country for care hire? It’s Portugal.

The Post Office’s annual Car Rental Report says it costs £553 to hire a car for a week in Faro, Portugal, including 40 litres (8.7 gallons) of unleaded petrol, an additional driver and satnav hire, against £248 for the same deal Copenhagen, Denmark.

Croatia was second most expensive destination (£547), followed by France (£447). Germany was the second cheapest (£264), followed by the Netherlands (£277).

The potential excess costs renters could incur in the case of an accident or theft varies across Europe, with those hiring in Switzerland looking at a £1,270 bill – a fee that could be prevented by paying £102 for additional insurance, which also covers tyre and windscreen cover. The figures are an average of the three #carhire companies in each country.

Andrew Brown from the Post Office said: ‘It’s a false economy to cut costs by sticking to the basic hire cost. We advise motorists to protect themselves against costs that could run into hundreds of pounds if the car suffers damage or is stolen. Don’t leave it until you get to the rental desk in your holiday destination, where you will be bombarded with questions and might sign on the dotted line without understanding what’s included and what’s not.’

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