New research by one of the UK’s leading online independent travel agencies has revealed that Britons are a friendly bunch when it comes to holidays abroad, with two thirds claiming to have made friends with fellow holidaymakers on their last overseas holiday.

It seems that holidays abroad are the ideal scenario in which to meet new friends, with two thirds of Britons claiming they did exactly that on their last overseas trip; according to the research by the UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agencies.

www.sunshine.co.uk carried out the study as part of ongoing research into the holiday habits of British holidaymakers. 2,016 UK adults were polled in the study, each of whom had been abroad on holiday in the past 12 months. Respondents were asked questions surrounding their last trip abroad and what they got up to on their holiday.

When asked, ‘Did you socialise and/or make friends with fellow holidaymakers on your last trip abroad?’ 67% of those who took part in the study said ‘yes’. These respondents were then asked whether or not they had kept in touch with any of the people they met on their last holiday, to which a third, 35%, said ‘yes’.

Of those who hadn’t kept in touch, 28% said they would have liked to, but they didn’t exchange contact details with the people they had met. 2% of those who had kept in touch with the people they met on holiday said they were planning on going abroad together at the same time in the future.

Sunshine.co.uk asked those respondents who had made friends whilst on holiday where they lived back home in the UK, in order to find out where was home to the ‘friendliest’ holidaymakers. According to the results, the friendliest holidaymakers, based on those who are most likely to make friends with fellow tourists on holiday, were from the following areas:

1.       Yorkshire

2.       Devon

3.       Essex

4.       Glamorgan

5.       Cornwall

6.       Sussex

7.       Nottinghamshire

8.       Herefordshire

9.       Avon

10.   Aberdeenshire

When asked, whether they thought meeting friends had made their holiday more enjoyable, 91% of those who had said they thought that was the case.

Chris Brown, co-founder of sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings;

“Some people like to go on holiday and keep themselves to themselves, whilst others enjoy mingling and meeting new people. I think it’s great when you meet people on holiday that you get along with and to see that some were even planning to go away again with those very people they had met was quite a revelation!”

“Providing the people you meet don’t end up wanting to spend every minute of every day with you and your family, meeting new people with similar interests can add a new dimension to a holiday and can give you much more to talk about and a lot more to do!”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money.

Chris Brown of sunshine.co.uk was a ‘Secret Millionaire’ in the series on Channel 4 that began in October 2010.

Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

TravelMole recently voted sunshine.co.uk as the best Travel Agency in the 2010 web awards.

A leading online independent travel agency has revealed that this weekend is the ‘winter blues weekend’ based on the time of year when most people in the UK book a holiday for the following year. Research of more than 1,400 people was also carried out to discover more about how people feel about their holidays.

The UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent has released site statistics that show the last weekend in October was the time of the year in 2008 and 2009 when they received the most bookings for holidays the following year. As such, the site has branded this weekend the ‘winter blues weekend’, as it is when they expect most to plan their escape from the UK and the gloomy weather once again.

www.sunshine.co.uk has looked into past booking and search statistics on the site to determine when the most people visit the site to book a holiday for the following year. 1,489 British holidaymakers were also polled, to find out more about their holiday habits.

62% claimed booking a holiday ‘made them feel better’ and 11% said they hated ‘going a year without a trip around’. A third, 34%, admitted to looking up holidays whilst they were at work.

78% of the respondents claimed to book holidays in the winter months. When asked by http://www.sunshine.co.uk why they did so, 59% claimed it gave them ‘something to look forward to’.

Respondents were also asked ‘does the weather in the UK made you feel low?’ and a high number, 67%, said that it did. One in ten, 9%, even went as far as saying the weather in the UK made them ‘want to live abroad one day’.

When asked, ‘Do you return from a holiday feeling refreshed?’ 97% of people said that they did, but the study also found that the average time it takes people to feel as though they need another holiday is after just four weeks of being home.

Respondents were also asked to determine, out of Birthdays, Christmas and holidays, what they most looked forward to in a year. 82% of people picked ‘holidays’.

Chris Brown, co-founder of http://www.sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings;

“We thought it would be fun to look in more detail at the day when most visitors to our site are thinking about and booking their holiday for the following year. The last weekend of October is on track to be a popular time for bookings yet again and, I can only assume the recent plunge in temperatures has a lot to do with that.

“October is a time when the heat, if any, of summer has disappeared and Christmas is just a little too far away to be excited about, so people get left with nothing much to enjoy or look forward to. Booking a holiday certainly seems a remedy for most!”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, or to arrange interviews with Chris Brown, please contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money.

Chris Brown of sunshine.co.uk was a ‘Secret Millionaire’ in the series on Channel 4 that began in October 2010.

Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

TravelMole recently voted sunshine.co.uk as the best Travel Agency in the 2010 web awards.

Nationwide research by the UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent for holidays solely to Tenerife has found that almost a third of holidaymakers have ran out of spending money during their vacation.

A new study by www.tenerife.co.uk of 1,312 holidaymakers has discovered that running out of money on holiday is a common occurrence, with 31% of the respondents admitting to finding themselves out of pocket whilst on their last trip abroad.

Of the holidaymakers www.tenerife.co.uk spoke to, 51% went on a self-catering holiday and 34% said they opted for all inclusive, meaning they had meals and drinks provided. Of those who chose the self-catering option, only 9% said they regularly cooked meals in their accommodation, whilst 64% claimed to eat out every day.

The study found that the average amount of spending money taken on a 2 week holiday by self-catering holidaymakers was £500, whilst all inclusive holiday makers took a lot less, with the average figure standing at £300.

Just under a quarter of the people asked, 23%, admitted to dipping into their funds back home by finding an ATM on their holiday to access their money, despite the charges that come with withdrawing money abroad.

Of those who admitted to previously running out of money on holiday, 64% were male and 36% were female, suggesting women are much more likely to be spending savvy on holiday.

49% of the respondents admitted to spending money on themselves whilst on holiday that was meant to be used on gifts for friends and family back home. Of those who said they had ran out of money, 12% said it was due to being delayed on the journey home, meaning they had to stay abroad for longer than planned.

Chris Brown, co-founder of tenerife.co.uk, commented on the findings of the study;

“Spending money makes up a large proportion of the total cost of a holiday and I think it’s easy to underestimate how much extra cash to put aside once flights and accommodation have been paid for. People should always put by a little extra for their holiday, as delays are a common occurrence and many people end up staying abroad for longer than planned, which is particularly true of the recent crisis caused by the volcanic ash.

“All inclusive holidays are a much better option for people who require a safety net in case of overspending, as you are guaranteed meals and drinks even if the funds are running low! ATMs abroad can be dangerous on holiday, in the sense that it’s easy to lose track of how much you are spending, so we encourage all holidaymakers to work out a clear daily budget before they jet off.”

LINK http://www.tenerife.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, or to arrange an interview with somebody about Tenerife.co.uk, contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

Tenerife.co.uk launched in March 2010 and is from the founders of the UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent sunshine.co.uk. Tenerife.co.uk offers holidays solely to Tenerife.

www.sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money. Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

After receiving an increasing amount of enquiries from male holidaymakers about whether the hotel they will be visiting will be showing the World Cup this summer, the UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent has commissioned research to find out more about the rising panic.

New research commissioned by one of the UK’s leading online independent travel agents of 2,634 men aged 18-30 has looked into attitudes towards holidaying during the World Cup.

Www.sunshine.co.uk wanted to run the poll after noticing an increasing amount of enquiries in the run up to the World Cup as to whether or not the resort they would be staying in would be showing the matches. Of the men polled, 27% already have a holiday abroad booked for this year and 31% are planning to book one.

Of those who are or are potentially going away this year, 62% said they wanted to watch the World Cup and more than 1 in 3, 36%, of those abroad at the time of the competition said they would be checking whether their hotel, resort or somewhere in the surrounding area would be showing the games. Nearly half, 49%, said they felt anxious at the thought of missing a match that they wanted to see.

14% said they were using the World Cup as an excuse to go abroad, admitting the warm weather made for nicer surroundings to enjoy the game in. Only 8% said they would rather have stayed home during the World Cup, whilst 22% admitted it was their partner that had persuaded them to go away.

The study by http://www.sunshine.co.uk also found that 12% had contacted their hotel to check what other nationalities were going to be staying there during the World Cup and nearly a quarter, 23%, said they would rather check in to a hotel with more English guests, to avoid a clash over the match results.

54% said they would prioritise watching a World Cup match over any other activities on holiday.

Chris Brown, co-founder of http://www.sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings;

“After already looking into women’s opinions of the World Cup and finding how a large number planned to go on holiday to avoid the game, we wanted to hear more from men about their thoughts on the subject.

“Judging by the research results and the number of panicked enquiries we have had at sunshine.co.uk, it’s clear that many men are worried about missing out if the go abroad whilst the World Cup is on. Luckily, it’s given away in the name that the World Cup is a widely appreciated game, so I don’t think there’s any danger of people not being able to find somewhere to watch the match on holiday.”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, or to arrange an interview with somebody about sunshine.co.uk, contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

Sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money. Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

The UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent has released trading figures that show an 89% increase in sales in January 2010 when compared to January 2009 and has revealed which destinations have seen most bookings this year so far.

www.sunshine.co.uk has seen sales almost double from January 2009 to January 2010, with a sales increase of 89%, suggesting that things are looking bright for the travel and tourism industry this year. The number of bookings has risen by half and the number of passengers sent abroad has increased by 46% when compared to the same time in January last year.

These latest statistics from sunshine.co.uk follow a successful trading year in 2009, despite the recession, and highlight the fact that the travel industry is already picking up following the economic downturn. Other figures that further demonstrate this point are the most and least popular holiday destinations based on percentage share of bookings at sunshine.co.uk.

The site found that whilst Spain is still the most popular destination in terms of percentage share of bookings, the holiday location has seen only a marginal growth in terms of bookings since last year. Even though the USA only accounts for a small number of bookings on sunshine.co.uk in terms of share percentage, the actual number of bookings to the States has doubled when compared to January 2009.

In order, the destinations that have seen the biggest increase in bookings when compared to January 2009, along with the percentage increases figures are;

1. Egypt – 111.6%
2. Greece – 108.5%
3. USA – 102.4%
4. Turkey – 100.7%
5. Portugal – 88.5%
6. Malta – 80.9%
7. Canaries – 72.4%
8. Tunisia – 5.9%
9. Spain – 3.7%

Chris Brown, co-founder of sunshine.co.uk, commented on these trading figures;

“We are extremely lucky to have had such a successful year and see the increases in sales, passengers and bookings that we have. Whilst these statistics reflect the success of sunshine.co.uk, they also go a long way to proving that the travel industry as a whole is picking up.

He continued, “It’s interesting to see that whilst Spain still has the biggest percentage of market share when it comes to bookings on our site, it is actually destinations like the USA and Egypt that have seen the biggest percentage increase in bookings. The fact that bookings to Egypt and Greece have more than doubled in the past year, but the number of people opting to go to Spain has only grown marginally proves that the trends of the trade are changing.”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information or to set up interviews with Chris Brown please contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis Public Relation Agency, on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes

Sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money. Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

The UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent can report a dramatic increase in people booking holidays following the festive comedown and freezing conditions, when compared to the same time last year.

Since December and when compared to the same time last year, www.sunshine.co.uk has seen a huge increase in bookings for holidays to hot destinations like the Canary Islands and Egypt, as the ice and snow is tempting more people to head abroad to lift their spirits caused by the January blues.

With the recession declared over by economists at the end of December and the icy weather taking its toll on Britain’s roads and population, there has been a 67% rise in the number of bookings for holidays on sunshine.co.uk. More people can now afford to enjoy a break away from the weather as a result which is both positive for the travel industry and holidaymakers in general.

January 2009 saw some low temperatures, but not to the extent of the conditions that the country is currently experiencing. Sunshine.co.uk wanted to find out what factors were influencing people to start making bookings, so collected the thoughts of 1,226 Brits.

83% of respondents admit to being in a better financial position now than this time last year to book a holiday and 2 in 3 said that escaping the cold was a top reason for wanting to get some winter sun. Almost half, 48%, said they were feeling slightly low now that Christmas is officially over and of those people, 95% said a holiday would cheer them up.

Chris Brown, co-founder of sunshine.co.uk, commented on the rise in bookings;

“It is extremely encouraging to see this current rise in holiday bookings, not just for us as a travel agent, but for the thousands of people that have wanted to get away for a while, but who have been restricted by their finances. The recession affected us all in some way, but it’s good to see things are now looking up in the economy.”

“In an ideal world, I think everyone wants an annual holiday and now it is possible. The desire to get away for a week or two to somewhere sunny has definitely been heightened by the snow that the UK is experiencing and the January blues that many suffer from after Christmas.”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information or to set up interviews with Chris Brown please contact Shannon Haigh

10 Yetis Public Relation Agency, on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes:

·         Sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s largest independent online travel agent

·         The management team behind the company created and managed Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money.

The UK’s fastest growing online independent travel agent has revealed the top ten places around the world to be this New Year’s Eve.

www.sunshine.co.uk has released a list of the top ten travel destinations to celebrate on New Year’s Eve. The list includes more popular destinations such as New York, or more specifically Times Square, and also locations that aren’t openly appreciated for their celebrations, such as Niagara in Canada and Cape Town.

The top ten destinations to be celebrating on New Year’s Eve 2009 are;

1. New York, USA – The city that never sleeps is home to some of the best New Year’s Eve celebrations in the world. Times Square is the place to be, where approximately one million people gather to watch the famous New Year’s Eve Ball descending from a flagpole at the top of One Times Square.

1. Sydney, Australia – Like most destinations throughout the world, Sydney celebrates New Year’s eve with a bang, with plenty of fireworks over the Harbour at 9pm and again at midnight. The fireworks have become the most watched display in the world and there are cocktail and party cruises in Sydney Hour for people to party in style.

1. London, England – New Year’s Eve party cruises along the Thames are very popular with celebrators in London, whilst people gather at the London Eye to watch huge fireworks in the wait for Big Ben to chime at midnight.

1. Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – New Year’s Eve in Brazil officially marks the beginning of the summer holidays, so it’s a great place to head for a bit of winter sun. The beach of Copacabana is believed by many to have one of the best firework displays in the world. Traditionally, Brazilians wear white to bring good luck for the New Year.

1. Paris, France – The city of lights becomes that little bit brighter when an impressive fireworks display is let off from the Eiffel Tower on the stroke of midnight. Celebrations range from formal balls and feasts to quiet dining with friends, family and a glass of champagne.

1. Edinburgh, Scotland – On New Year’s Eve, Edinburgh is home to the biggest street party in Europe and, whilst most cities party for just one night, the celebrations in Scotland last for four days, with a whole program of events for all ages. There might even be snow!

1. Cape Town, South Africa – New Year’s Eve in Cape Town can be celebrated on the backdrop of Table Mountain and the Atlantic Ocean, and the many roof top parties and wine bars attract plenty of party-goers every year. Costumed dancers, painted faces, fireworks and banjo players complete the celebrations.

1. Bangkok, Thailand – Thailand is perhaps the only country in the world to celebrate a New Year three times annually; once in January for the Chinese New Year, again in April for the Thai New Year and finally at the end of December, as the Western New Year has been accepted as another night to do some serious partying at the many clubs and swanky bars in the city.

1. Las Vegas, USA – Where better to raise a glass to the New Year than in the city that parties non-stop all year round. Las Vegas is renowned for its casinos, bars and nightclubs and on New Year’s Eve massive firework displays extend way beyond the neon lights. The famous strip is closed to vehicles for the New Year’s Eve party, which is often attended by plenty of celebrities.

10.  Niagara, Canada – There’s no better reason to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Niagara than to experience the true beauty of the fireworks display over the infamous Niagara Falls. The spectacular event is held in Queen Victoria Park and is a sight that’s not to be missed.

Chris Brown, co-founder of Sunshine.co.uk, commented on the list of the best places to be this New Year’s Eve;

“I think many people rule out the possibility of celebrating New Year’s Eve abroad because it’s so close to Christmas, but if it’s a possibility financially then it’s definitely something people should experience at least once in their lives. New York and Sydney are perhaps the more obvious destinations that are great to visit for the New Year, but I think people should be aware of the hidden gems like Cape Town and Niagara, which really are spectacular places to wave goodbye to a year and welcome a new one.”

*ENDS*

For more information or to set up interviews with Chris Brown please contact Shannon Haigh

10 Yetis Public Relation Agency, on 01452 348211 or email [email protected]

Editors Notes:

·         Sunshine.co.uk is the UK’s largest independent online travel agent

·         The management team behind the company created and managed Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money.