Super Sunshine Saturday after the Covid lull

Families looking for a sunny break are expected to drive bookings back to pre-Covid levels this saturday.

The first saturday of the year is known as sunshine saturday by the travel industry as it is typically the most popular day to book a foreign trip.

Tour operators and travel agents expect the day will be ‘ one of the busiest for a number of years’, as pandemic-era travel restrictions are left behind, except for arrivals from China.

The claims are based on a survey by industry body abta, which found 61 per cent of people are planning to take an overseas holiday this year.

some 31 per cent of people in a separate survey said they plan to book a holiday earlier than normal to get the best price.

abta chief executive mark Tanzer said: ‘The start of the year usually brings lots of enthusiasm for booking holidays and we know many people will be really looking forward to getting away in 2023.

‘People’s appetite for holiday-taking has remained remarkably resilient despite the ongoing pressure on people’s finances, though there’s definitely a strong focus on securing great value for money.’

abta said holiday locations closer to home in europe are particularly popular this year, such as spain, Greece, Turkey and italy.