17m to book all or part of main holiday online – report

At least 17 million people are forecast to book part of their main 2007 holiday via the internet.

New research shows that 13 million will go also online to purchase part of a short break.

It found that of the total UK adult population, more than 20 million will use the internet to source information about some element of their main holiday. Sixteen million will use the internet to seek information about short breaks.

The findings of the 2007 Holiday Online Planning Report by market research company Continental Research shows that 63% or 17 million people will purchase part of their main 2007 holiday online, and 49% will do so for a short break.

More than three quarters (78%/21 million) will seek information about their main holiday online, with 59% (16 million) using the internet to source information about short breaks.

The report described the numbers as “conservative estimates” as they only refer to one trip.

“The importance of a good online presence and a good online service is imperative for most businesses in this sector,” the report says.

But it warns that tour operators and travel agents could do more to raise their online presence and create ‘top of mindness’ amongst online users.

Random searches are the most popular way travellers gather information about their holidays online, the report found. This emphasises the importance of search in any online campaign to ensure potential customers easily find a website.

“Past research has shown that once a surfer has found your site it should be sufficiently impactful to hold their attention, easy to navigate and clearly communicate the relevant information,” the report says.

“For main holiday takers online travel sites such as Expedia, lastminute.com and Opodo are more likely to be sourced than for short breaks.

“Tour operator and travel agent sites are also more likely to be visited by people planning a main holiday than a short break. However, the numbers visiting tour operator/travel agent sites is lower than for the dedicated online travel sites.

“This could be because many tour operators offer other channels of contact e.g. via the high street or over the telephone, or possibly because they have been slow to create a strong online presence their sites are not immediately ‘top of mind’ for travellers.”

British Airways was the most visited site for those using airline websites for their main holiday (52%), followed by easyJet (32%), Virgin (26%), Ryanair (24%), Bmi (22%), any US airline (14%), Air France (9%), Iberia (6%) and others (16%). If short breaks had been included, mentions of the the no-frills airlines’ sites would probably have been higher. 

The report shows that the convenience and expertise provided by the full package holiday is still very much valued by travellers and is one of the most popular items booked online for both a main holiday and short break.

Continental Research found that 34% of people would book their total package online and a similar number would book flights towards their main holiday. Eighteen per cent would use the internet to book hotels, 10% for car hire, 9% for villas and apartments, 5% for rail tickets, 4% for ferry tickets, 3% for tours, 3% for attractions and 1% each for restaurants, city/country passes and coach tickets.

For short breaks, 37% would go online to book their hotel, 32% to book the full package and 26% to book flights.

Of the total 26.8 million UK adults online, 19.6 million took a short break of two to five nights duration with paid accommodation in the last 12 months, according to the report. The UK is the favoured short break destination for more than half of internet users.

Sun and beach holidays remain the most popular main packages amongst internet users followed by trips to visit friend and relatives. The report also found that around 1.4 million internet users are considering using a holiday home for their main holiday this year, demonstrating the importance of the second home market.

Nearly a third of online holidaymakers (29%) plan to take their main holiday in the UK, a figure expected to rise due to increasing popularity of destinations such as Cornwall, Wales and Scotland, according to the report.

*The report costs £175 and is available from Continental Research of 020 7490 5844.

Report by Phil Davies