A huge number of people plan to stay in a holiday rental property in 2010 with South Africa and Turkey emerging as two of the most popular destinations next year.
Some 89% of holidaymakers will book this kind of accommodation, up from 62% in 2009, according to the Marketplace Report from HomeAway UK.
It also found a level of repeat use of holiday home rentals, plus continued strong growth in first-time use with 68% of holiday home owners report bookings in the third quarter of 2009 were on a par with, or higher than the same period last year. While of those who stayed or will stay in a rental in 2009, 81% had previously stayed in a holiday home and 19% will be first time renters.
‘The fact that our report reveals a high level of both repeat and first time use of rentals demonstrates the strong traveller satisfaction and growth levels within this industry,’ said Courtney Wylie, General Manager for HomeAway Holiday Rentals.
She revealed that traffic to the company’s two UK sites, HomeAway.co.uk and OwnersDirect.co.uk, was 13% greater in July 2009 than it was in January at a time when there has been a decrease of 2% across travel sites in general. ‘We expect this trend to continue even as the economy improves as there has been a significant shift towards travellers seeking better value for their holiday money,’ she added.
Almost 40% of owners reported that their level of bookings in the third quarter of 2009 was around the same as last year and 28% reported a higher level of bookings. In addition, out of those whose properties were available for rental, 44% said they were booked up for the October half term holidays, 26 % for Christmas, 29% for New Years and over 1 in 5 reported already being booked for the summer 2010 school holidays.
Renters though are driving a harder deal and also waiting until the last moment to get away in the hope of securing the best price. Some 36% of owners said they had noticed more people haggling for a discount and over a quarter said more travellers were booking at the last minute.
Only 1% said that they will be unable to take a holiday in 2010 due to the economy, a decrease from the 5% who said they were affected in 2009. But more opted for a holiday in the UK rather than abroad in 2009 with booking enquiries up 90% year on year with London, Cornwall and Devon the most popular.
Cape Town is the top destination for June 2010 because of the Football world cup with Turkey also popular. New York shopping trips, winter sun in the Canaries and top ski spots are also doing well.
Not so hot though was Dubai. This year, growth in both property listings and traveller demand for Dubai has been static, the report found.