More Families Booking Term Time Holidays

A Family At The Beach. Picture Credit: Canva

Travel agents and tour operators are reporting a noticeable shift in the way British families are booking holidays, with more choosing to travel outside the traditional summer peak, even during school term time.

Hays Travel owner Dame Irene said the agency is seeing “significantly” more families travelling outside the summer holiday period, a trend echoed by other operators and online agents.
 

Growing Demand for Off-Peak Travel

Online travel agency loveholidays has recorded a 29% year-on-year increase in autumn term-time family departures. Popular destinations are seeing particularly sharp rises, including a 251% increase in bookings to Sharm el Sheikh, 218% to Calas de Mallorca, 153% to Dubai’s Palm Jumeirah, and 150% to Puerto Rico in the Canary Islands.

CEO Donat Rétif said more travellers are choosing “shoulder season” trips to benefit from fewer crowds and lower prices.
 

Disrupting Traditional Booking Patterns

SPL Villas has noticed a similar trend, with demand growing for May-June half term holidays and off-peak bookings extending well into the shoulder season. General Manager Laura Ingeri said villa availability for the May half term in Mallorca, Rhodes, and Cyprus is already 12% lower than last year, while summer dates have 33% more availability.

Families, she added, “are certainly not giving up travelling but seeking value in off-season travel.” Many are also joining forces with other families to rent large villas for longer stays, with average trip lengths up 12%, booking values up 44%, and group sizes up 31% compared to last year.
 

Strategic Getaways

Not Just Travel co-founder Steve Witt said more parents are taking children out of school for milestone events or longer breaks, particularly for primary-aged children. Flying mid-week or leaving a few days before a school holiday can mean big savings.
Blue Bay Travel CEO Alistair Rowland noted that pushing the boundaries of term dates, departing just before or returning just after official school breaks, can cut costs by 10-15%, especially for long-haul or multi-centre trips.

Aspire Travel’s Kelly Baldwin confirmed that more UK families are being strategic, timing departures or returns to overlap slightly with term time to stretch their budgets.
 

Avoiding Extreme Weather and Crowds

Some families are booking outside the summer to avoid intense heat and overtourism. Maria Luz Marin, Senior Director of Luxury Sales at Melia, said October half-term bookings are now stronger than those in July and August for some hotels.
 

Not Everyone is Seeing a Shift

Despite these reports, Jet2 CEO Steve Heapy said the company hasn’t seen a significant change in family travel patterns. “Families go away when the school holidays are,” he said, adding that peak summer months remain in high demand.
 

The Rules on Term-Time Travel

In England, parents who take children out of school without permission can be fined £80 per child if paid within 21 days, rising to £160 after 28 days. Despite the risk, some families are finding the potential savings , and the chance to travel in more comfortable conditions, too good to resist.
 

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