An Autumn Holiday: A 21st Century travel trend?

The recession has had some adverse effects on the travel industry. Predictably, during the springtime UK holidaymakers had to be very decisive about where they wanted to spend the summer in order to save money. Subsequently, many opted to stay at home for a ‘staycation' but unfortunately July and August have come and gone with little in terms of ‘holiday weather', leaving many disappointed and in search of last minute holidays abroad.

Of course, family holidays during autumn are traditionally out of the ordinary - not least because of the need to take the kids out of school. However, new research by Tesco Travel Money has found that 17 percent of parents are planning to take children out of school to benefit from cheaper off-peak autumn prices abroad. For many families, the recession meant that advance booking was not possible back in spring because many were not sure that they would have the necessary funds in place.

Subsequently, even by mid-August, two fifths of parents had not yet booked a school holiday. The ongoing risk of swine flu is also said to have put of many prospective holidaymakers. The highly publicized last minute rush has also been reported to be causing many tour operators to start bumping up their prices again - as they normally would do for August. Of course, depending on length of the recession, there is little reason to sea that UK tourists don't behave in a similar way next year - i.e. hope for a decent summer at home, and take a last minute trip in Autumn if the weather is bad.

But where are people going over the next few months? So called ‘medium-haul' destinations that are just beyond the Eurozone are looking popular choices. Countries such as Turkey, Egypt, UAE and Oman are all benefiting from decline of sterling and the strength of the Euro - and continuing investment in their rapidly growing tourist areas. Additionally, these countries are often regarded to be at their best during September and October as they are a little cooler than the scorching summer months - but still mightily warm by our standards.

Another trend evident in 2009 that is likely to be repeated next year is that of holidaymakers opting for one annual holiday, as opposed to a number of trips throughout the year. This means that those who will take a last minute holiday this Autumn may not take another trip until the same time last year - subsequently, many are looking to book longer one-off trips.

Sarah Maple writes for Gohop.ie who offer American holidays and cheap sun holidays.