Key findings for the UK market include:

• Spain and France remain prime destinations, with Costa Blanca and Cote d'Azur as the top two locations.
• Strong performance of UK pound to Euro makes Eurozone countries most desirable.
• Only 16% of customers made use of offers, instead opting to pay full price to ensure they got the dates they wanted.
• France remains the favourite destination for UK skiers. Switzerland was in second place with 32% of the market.
• There is a preference for group travel in winter, with over 65% of skiers choosing accommodation that sleeps 4 or more.

In the study of over 12,000 UK holidaymakers, short-haul travel performed very strongly, and traditional destinations like Spain and France held their positions in 2015. Switzerland also remains a favourite destination for the UK, in spite a drop in bookings from Eurozone countries, due to the strong exchange rate, Swiss quality still continues to attract UK holidaymakers.

Last summer over 65% of customers chose to book a holiday apartment, with 35% opting for a villa or holiday house, 75% of customers chose a 3* or 4* property, and in line with the larger properties available, over 55% of people travel with at least 4 people or more, and over 75% stay for 5-14 nights.

One of the key messages from the report reflects the UK market's comfortable adoption of online booking, with over 71% of all bookings being made online. A majority of holiday research is still done on mobile devices, with bookings being completed on laptops or desktops, most online bookings also show multiple touch-points, sometimes up to 20 from first engagement to final click.
One interesting point, only 16% of customers made use of the generic offers available, the vast majority preferring to pay normal price to ensure they get the property they wanted. A large number of those bookers could have saved an extra 10% by booking early.

For Winter 2015/16, France is in the lead with regards to favourite destinations for UK skiers, with Switzerland a very secure second place on 32% of the market.  In comparison to the summer,  there are even more people travelling in larger groups, with over 66% of skiers choosing an accommodation that sleeps 4 or more. There are also twice as many customers booking 5* accommodation in the winter than in the summer.

The full report is available here - http://www.interhome.co.uk/news/20151109-holidayhouse-report/ 

Further Information:

Interhome AG is the European holiday rentals specialist, with more than 33,000 holiday houses, apartments and chalets in 31 countries. In 2014 Interhome welcomed over 600,000 guests and achieved a turnover of 191 Million CHF. Interhome AG, registered in Glattburg, Zurich, is 100% owned by Hotelplan Holding AG, which in turn is 100% owned by Migros, the largest retail organisation in Switzerland.

Press Contact: A Marr + Associates, Frank Marr, Tel. +44 (0) 20 3556 2555, Email: frank@amarr.associates