Later this month will see thousands of literature lovers descending on the small market town of Hay-on-Wye for the world-renowned Hay Festival. The event is a celebration of all things literary, bringing together poets, authors, thinkers, musicians and readers young and old. 

Holiday property letting specialists holidaycottages.co.uk have seen searches for holidays in Wales soar, almost doubling last year's searches for cottages during the festival week.

Managing Director James Morris says “It's fantastic to see big events like the Hay Festival attracting visitors from across the UK and beyond. We've seen a huge upturn in searches for May holidays in Wales, partly due to the good weather, but also because of an increasing interest in domestic holidays.”

Research just released by holidaycottages.co.uk reveals that over 70 per cent of people are more likely to support local business while on holiday within the UK than they are at home. Over three quarters of people say they eat out at local restaurants more often, while a similar number (73 per cent) say they buy more gifts and produce from local shops.
Almost half of respondents, (47 per cent) make an effort to stay in independently run owned or run accommodation.
Self-catering holiday properties in the Hay-on-Wye area have proved so popular that holidaycottages.co.uk are booked up for the week of the festival, with demand outstripping supply.

Availability has just been released for 2016 and bookings can now be made for the festival period from 26 May to 5 June 2016 visit www.holidaycottages.co.uk/wales for more information and availability.

About holidaycottages.co.uk

An award-winning national business, holidaycottages.co.uk specialises in letting holiday properties all across the UK including dog-friendly cottages, family properties and romantic, group and accessible holidays. Holidaycottages.co.uk let everything from cosy barn conversions on working farms, to grand mansions and country houses sleeping multiple numbers of guests.

Notes to editor:

• Holidaycottages.co.uk is an independent company and features 2,000 self-catering properties in popular holiday destinations across the UK.

• Winners of the Best Medium Holiday Cottage Booking Company 2014 at the British Travel Awards.

• The company offers a high standard of personally inspected holiday cottages which can be booked online via their user-friendly website, or over the phone with their Reservations Team.

• The company has been working with the Green Tourism Business Scheme – a nationally recognised scheme organised by Visit Britain – and currently hold the Gold award.

For more press information or hi-res images contact: Emma Southcombe on 01237 459 809 or email esouthcombe@holidaycottages.co.uk