It’s back to the 1970s...as Britons head to Benidorm
Tourists turn to traditional resorts for holidays as terror attack fears grow
BRITISH holidaymakers are going back to the Seventies as fear of unrest in North Africa and Turkey leads them to traditional resorts.
Spain, including the Canary Islands, and Portugal, which both boomed when low-cost package holidays were introduced, making a week in Benidorm affordable to many, have seen bookings soar.
Even David Cameron has joined the trend, with the Prime Minister currently on holiday in Lanzarote – the Spanish island dubbed ‘Lanzagrotty’ in the Seventies but which has transformed its image of late.
Figures from Abta, formerly the Association of British Travel Agents, show that bookings to Spain are 27 per cent up on this time last year, while Portugal is 32 per cent higher. Malta and Cyprus are selling well, up 15 and 14 per cent respectively, but bookings to Turkey are believed to be down by at least 40 per cent.
Terrorist attacks in Tunisia, Egypt, Turkey and last week in Brussels have meant travellers are more reluctant to stray from long-trusted tourist destinations.
Frank Brehany, director of consumer group HolidayTravelWatch, said: ‘Just before Brussels we did a survey of our customers and found that 45 per cent were more concerned about travelling abroad than before, and a similar number were also more fearful of flying. People are returning to more traditional resorts. It’s a coming home for consumers to spots of yesteryear. We just hope the resorts are up to it.’
Online travel agent Expedia said that flights to Malaga and Ibiza were ‘up more than 20 per cent, highlighting high demand for Spain this year’ while Abta said its members had seen a ‘big increase in bookings in Spain and Portugal’ as people moved away from North Africa and Turkey.
‘Easter is always seen as a curtainraiser for the summer season,’ its spokeswoman said, ‘and while we’d usually see Egypt, Turkey and Tunisia on the list of top destinations, instead it is Spain and the Canary Islands which are the superstar performers.’
For those travelling further afield, popular spots are Orlando, Mexico, Dubai and the Dominican Republic.
‘The holiday market is up on this time last year,’ she added, ‘but in times of global uncertainly people are more likely to book package holidays. They feel they are better looked after by tour operators when events such as those in Tunisia and Sharm-el-Sheikh happened.’
Leading tour operators such as Thomas Cook have been moving capacity from perceived risk spots to safer havens since autumn last year, booking hotels in the Canaries and mainland Spain. In February the company announced it was pulling out of Sharm-el-Sheikh until May at the earliest, and in the same month Mark Warner said it was pulling out of Turkey, moving its holidaymakers to its resorts in Greece, Sardinia and Corsica.
Mark Warner managing director David Hopkins said that bookings to Turkey had been down, adding: ‘You can’t go against overwhelming public sentiment. If tour operators can’t sell holidays at any price then they’re not going to do it.’
In a trading update issued just before the Brussels attacks, Thomas Cook said bookings were 5 per cent down on last year, with chief executive Peter Fankhauser blaming the ‘uncertain geopolitical environment’ for leading customers to book later. But its package holiday prices were up 4 per cent. Its rival, Tui Group, which owns Thomson, will issue a trading statement this week, and said last month that bookings to Turkey had fallen sharply, although Spain and Greece were doing well.
Both companies’ share prices fell sharply after the Brussels attacks, with Thomas Cook dropping 7 per cent and Tui 3.5 per cent. Both had only regained half that when markets closed for the Easter break.
In spite of the migrant crisis, Greece has proved surprisingly resilient, with bookings up on last year. Brehany said: ‘A lot of customers feel motivated to support tourism, especially in places they have been back to year after year. They have made friends in many of those places and are very loyal to them.
‘However it is difficult for specialist operators, for example those who operate in just one country, such as Turkey, Egypt, Kenya or Tunisia. Some have gone to the wall. They started up when the world was very different and are now having to deal with issues not of their making. Bigger companies with a wider portfolio are better placed to deal with it.’
Last month Turkey specialist Elixir Holidays went bust on the same day that an explosion in Ankara killed 28 people. Many cruise ships are avoiding Istanbul, scene of terror attacks both this month and last year.
Faced with heightened security leading to long delays at ports and airports, some people are opting to holiday in Britain. Brehany said: ‘People don’t want to give in to fear, but it does alter your perception of how you travel. Being in the UK means you’re not going to get stranded in Sharm-el-Sheikh or even by an ash cloud.’
He added that tour operators could benefit by showing that they were beefing up their own security.
‘There is a new reality and travel companies are having to accept this,’ he said. ‘However this could be a marketing opportunity, showing your consumers that you have their interests at heart.’