Watch the new video – Holidaying with the Over 50’s
Vox Pops International write … A survey conducted a year ago found that 80% of holidaymakers book their holiday’s online, with only 1 in 10 booking through a travel agent. This is only backed up further when we research our destinations, with 44% of us trusting reviews written on websites like TripAdvisor.
‘Nice to go on holiday without falling over children’
A survey conducted a year ago found that 80% of holidaymakers book their holiday’s online, with only 1 in 10 booking through a travel agent. This is only backed up further when we research our destinations, with 44% of us trusting reviews written on websites like TripAdvisor.
We hit the streets to find out how this compares with the over 50’s holidaying habits – is it staycation or vacation? Online or travel agent? Sydney or Scarborough?
2012 saw an increase in visits to the UK by almost 1% and a drop in Brits heading overseas by 0.5%. Ironically, visits to the UK fell during the 3rd quarter (July to September) of 2012, however spending increased by 8.5% due to the Olympic and Paralympic games.
‘Love holidays in England – great place with a lot of options’
Staying in the UK proved to be a very popular choice with the 50-pluses we interviewed, with Canal breaks, the Lake District and Devon coming out on top, however in most cases this wasn’t the ‘main holiday’ of their year. Interestingly, Cornwall wasn’t top-of-mind as expected, which is supported by a recent study from Saga Holidays that Cornwall has dropped to fourth place in the UK’s hot spots behind London, Edinburgh and the Lake District.
When it came to the big summer break, our over 50’s were very savvy at finding a good deal online for the big overseas holiday.
In fact, out of the 14 we interviewed, only 1 used a travel agent and another used the phone. Even those who couldn’t use a computer (let alone the internet) were still booking online through a friend or family member. A big factor for going down the online route seemed to come down to the element of choice, and being able to take more charge of your holiday instead of being persuaded by the commission hungry travel agent.
‘You make the decision when you press that button’
Overall, our video research found that the over 50’s are holidaying regularly, out-of-season, visiting the UK as well as overseas and above all are committed to taking charge and booking online.
Vox Pops International
Bank House
42 High Street
Ewell
Surrey KT17 1RW
Telephone: +44 (0) 208 786 8855
Fax: +44 (0) 208 393 9240
E-mail: info@voxpops.com
This is interesting. People over 50 is getting more and more open to embracing the digital age than ever. Great topic to discuss, Andy!