Hotel searches fall overseas and rise in the UK following heatwave

Hotel searches to popular overseas summer resorts have decreased following high temperatures in the UK, according to new data from hotel comparison website trivago.co.uk. Instead, UK holidaymakers seem to be opting for the ‘staycation’ option and hotel searches have increased to UK coastal destinations.

Below are the ten overseas and UK destinations with the largest percentage difference in hotel searches since 13th July, when the heatwave began. These destinations are taken from the 50 most searched-for UK and overseas coastal destinations during July 2013.
 

Overseas Destination	Percentage Decrease*		UK Destination	Percentage Increase*
Magaluf, Majorca	-25%		Woolacombe, Devon	41%
Sunny Beach, Bulgaria	-22%		Barmouth, Wales	20%
Palmanova, Majorca	-20%		Blackpool, Lancashire	20%
Ayia Napa, Cyprus	-19%		Falmouth, Cornwall	18%
Alcudia, Majorca	-17%		Folkestone, Kent	11%
Salou, Spain	-16%		Paignton, Devon	8%
Protaras, Cyprus	-16%		Newquay, Cornwall	8%
Santa Ponsa, Majorca	-16%		Skegness, Lincolnshire	7%
Fuengirola, Spain	-14%		St Ives, Cornwall	7%
Nerja, Spain	-13%		Portrush, N. Ireland	6%

Percentage difference between hotel searches on trivago.co.uk from 1st to 12th July compared to 13th to 24th July.

Since temperatures in the UK rose above 30C on Saturday 13th July, hotel searches on trivago.co.uk to overseas summer destinations decreased by up to 25 per cent. The 12 days leading up to the heatwave (1st July to 12th July) were compared to the 12 days following the outbreak of the heatwave (13th July to 24th July). During the first 12 days, temperatures in London were at an average high of 25C, compared to an average high of 30C following Saturday 13th.

Out of the 50 most searched-for overseas destinations amongst UK travellers during July 2013, Majorcan resorts show the greatest percentage decrease in hotel searches since the heatwave. Four out of the top ten destinations are located in Majorca, with searches in Magaluf down by 25 per cent, Palmanova down by 20 per cent, Alcudia down by 17 per cent and Santa Ponsa down by 16 per cent. Majorca is a popular destination amongst UK holidaymakers and it is unusual to see searches decrease during peak summer season.

Also showing significant decreases since the heatwave are Bulgaria’s Sunny Beach (down 22 per cent), Cyprus’s Ayia Napa and Protaras (down 19 per cent and 16 per cent respectively), Catalonia’s Salou (also down 16 per cent) and Costa del Sol’s Fuengirola and Nerja (down 14 per cent and 13 per cent respectively).

In the UK, hotel searches have increased in some coastal destinations by up to 41 per cent since the heatwave.

Devon and Cornwall is the most searched-for region, with hotel searches in Woolacombe up by 41 per cent, Falmouth up by 18 per cent, Paignton up by 8 per cent, Newquay also up by 8 per cent and St Ives up by 7 per cent.

Also popular is Barmouth in Wales (up 20 per cent), Blackpool (also up 20 per cent) and Folkestone (up 11 per cent). The increase in hotel searches on the UK coast suggests the heatwave persuaded some holidaymakers to make the most of the British weather and stay at home this summer. This is supported by trivago’s Summer Trends data, which suggests the ‘Staycation’ is on the rise, with 16 of the top 50 most popular summer destinations located in the UK.

Percentages calculated from the number of searches between 1st and 12th July 2013 compared to the number of searches between 13th and 24th July 2013. The top 50 searched for overseas summer resorts during July 2013 and the top 50 searched for coastal UK destinations during July 2013 were considered. Displayed are ten from each category with the largest percentage increase or decrease.