Will there be a domestic holiday boom this summer?

With news of border closures every day, it's unsurprising that a lot of people feel sceptical about booking holidays abroad this year, which is why more people are set to visit UK holiday spots like Cornwall than ever before.

But, as we are stuck in a seemingly never-ending lockdown, is this even a possibility? It would definitely be useful for accommodation providers to know, so they can assess hotel recruitment and see if they need any more staff.

Here’s our take on it!

We should be out of lockdown by April.

If the vaccination programme carries on at the rate that it has been going, all over 70s who have had the vaccine will have some degree of immunity by the start of March.

By the start of April, this should include all over 60s and those with underlying health conditions; by this time, the government has suggested that it makes no sense to keep retail and potentially even hospitality venues shut. It’s highly likely that we will be out of a full lockdown by this time, it’s just unsure exactly how far out of it we will be.

Hospitality venues should be open by the summer (and group trips may be a thing)

We very much hope that venues will be able to open earlier - potentially for the May half term. However, we can say with a degree of certainty that hospitality venues should be open for the school summer holidays, meaning that families seeking summer holidays in the UK should be able to do so - and you might need to hire some more staff for your hotel or hospitality business!

The border closures may get worse

We really aren’t sure what will happen in regards to border closures, but we know that people have been advised against booking holidays abroad, and hotel quarantine may eventually be necessary for all new arrivals to the UK. This is because of the risk of bringing in new strains of Covid-19 into the country. Therefore, lots of people are looking to book holidays in the UK, causing a huge demand.

What if a new strain gets into the country?

The absolute worst situation - and the only realistic one that could result in us still being in a lockdown in the summer - is another mutant strain entering the country. This is a possibility, but scientists are doing everything possible to avoid it.

To summarise, the biggest likelihood is that there will be a boom in domestic travel this year. Therefore, if you do normally need to hire new staff for the summer period, you might want to start thinking about it now.