Trend Three

The top holiday activities planned for 2008

Those in the North East just love sunshine and over a quarter (26 cent) cite warm weather as the main driver behind a mid-haul short break. Those in the Midlands, however, would choose a ‘super-break’ mainly because it’s somewhere very different to Europe (44 cent). (9)

Rise of the ‘super-break’

Short city breaks have undergone a huge growth in popularity over the past few years thanks to the rise in more affordable air travel and travellers wanting to make the most of just a few days away

While the traditional ‘city break’ destinations, such as Rome, Paris and Venice, stay eternally popular, 2007 saw Brits becoming more adventurous and heading east with Krakow, Dresden, Riga and Sofia all making it onto the top short breaks list.

We expect that 2008 may see this trend amplified with the rise of the ‘super-break’ - a short break to a mid-haul destination such as Hong Kong, Dubai, Egypt and South Africa - thanks to the increased affordability of flights to these destinations and a desire to make the most of even a few days holiday by experiencing something new and different.

Nearly a third (31 per cent) of those polled by Expedia.co.uk have already or would consider booking a mid-haul destination as a short break with those aged 25 - 34 and in the South East most enthusiastic. The most popular reason cited for taking a ‘super-break’ is to experience a different culture (42 per cent).(8)

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