FAMILIES are ditching their holiday plans for the October half term and are looking to summer 2021 already.
As the UK is threatened with another lockdown, and more countries are placed onto the quarantine list, nervous Brits are instead opting for a trip further in advance.
The government has warned that domestic holidays could be at risk during the half term due to local lockdowns, while Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon begged Scots not to book an overseas holiday in case of a nationwide shutdown.
She said yesterday: “Please think of the October break as an opportunity to further limit social interaction."
“And, given that this is a global pandemic, please do not book travel overseas for the October break if it is not essential.”
The rule-of-six brought in by the government has already led to a wave of cancellations of UK staycations, with large groups of friends or family no longer able to go away together.
Now, Brits are anticipating a UK holiday again next summer – and places are already selling out.
Last month, camping website Pitchup.com had 1,400 bookings for next summer – an increase of 500 per cent – while Canopy and Stars who offer glamping holidays had more bookings for August 2021 than this August.
According to the Guardian, holiday home owners such asUnder the Thatch, a collection of Welsh holiday cottages, and Blackberry Wood treehouses in East Sussex have just a few weekends available for the whole of their 2021 season.
Cornwall and Devon, two of the most popular destinations for Brits, have seen cottages sell out for all of summer, with some bookings as far ahead as 2023.
Under the Thatch founder Greg Stevenson warned: "People have only got to look at our calendars to see that there is a genuine chance they will miss out, and not get the places that are normally still available in our peak summer booking period."
While he added that people will still be able to find cottages and campsites if they book much later next year, it is unlikely to have much choice – meaning a beach-front house or sea-view caravan might be off the cards.
Holiday parks and hotels are offering bargain rates for staycations this autumn and winter amid fears of a UK slump post-summer holiday.
Brits who still want to book a holiday can find deals including £25 a night hotel rooms and £29 breaks at a holiday resort.
We've also rounded up the best cottages that you can book for six people of less, following the government's new rules.
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