Scotland is attracting soaring levels of 'staycation' bookings from UK travellers this Spring bank holiday.
Holidays to far-flung and exotic destinations feel as though they’re just on the horizon for the first time in months, but new insight suggests that the staycation trend is here to stay, and it’s Scotland that’s taking the spotlight.
Since the beginning of April, holiday rentals search engine HomeToGo has recorded a 255.50% increase in searches for holiday accommodation in Scotland for the 28th - 31st May, in comparison to 2019.
It seems that travellers can't wait to get away to Fife which has seen the most dramatic uplift in interest with a search growth of 989.19%.
The Kingdom is followed by The Highlands at an increase of 811.59%, the Scottish Borders has seen a rise of 358.33%, East Lothian an increase of 338.10%, Argyll and Bute is more than 217% and Dumfries and Galloway sits at more than 216.07% growth.
Experts think the search growth has been driven by value in Scottish destinations, where the median price per night for a holiday home over the Bank Holiday weekend is on average £36.59 lower than in the popular staycations destinations of Cornwall, Dorset, Cumbria and Devon.
Inverness and St Andrews are the most popular destinations for couples, while for solo travellers it's Skye and The Isle of Mull and the most popular with groups is Loch Lomond and Ayrshire.
Breaks by the sea for the bank holiday are in demand with search figures for coastal destinations such as St Andrews, Ullapool, Inverness and Dundee seeing increases of up to 345%. And, others are looking for their waterside holiday fix further inland: searches for Loch Lomond are also up by 612.22%.
Caroline Burns, Travel Expert at HomeToGo, said: “HomeToGo’s recent Return of Travel study identified beach breaks as the top post-lockdown priority for the majority of UK holidaymakers, with stays in nature ranking second.
"With wild coasts and unspoiled natural landscapes, from the shores of St Andrews to the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park’s Munros, it’s easy to see how Scotland’s tourism offering corresponds to these traveller preferences.
“What’s more, we know that a lot of holidaymakers are now looking for trips where they can bring their dogs, for which Scotland is a great choice due to its accessibility, beautiful wide open spaces, and plentiful pets-allowed accommodation.
In fact, the town of Aviemore in the Cairngorms National Park is one of the UK’s most dog-friendly destinations, with 32% of the Aviemore lettings available through HomeToGo listed as permitting pets.”
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