Monarch reports 200,000 people will fly with it over Easter, with the most popular holiday hotspots being Malaga, Tenerife and Lanzarote.
Monarch Flights and Holidays managing director Liz Savage said: ‘Despite slower booking rates at the start of the year, demand for Monarch flights over the Easter period has been really strong during the past month and passengers numbers are already up 18%, compared to the Easter holiday period last year.’
Thomson and First Choice report strong bookings for the Easter holidays, with limited availability for last-minute deals. Spain, the Caribbean and Egypt are the hotspots.
Tim Williamson, customer director for Thomson and First Choice, said: ‘The combination of the coldest winter for ten years, and the chilly economic climate has led to millions of Brits to pack their bags and take a well-earned holiday in the sun.’
‘The summer holidays are likely to be equally as busy as Easter.’
According to ABTA, the late Easter break will boost April passenger numbers by 20% compared to last year.
ABTA chief executive Mark Tanzer said: ‘As holiday time looms, people are indeed booking.
‘It appears consumer confidence is rising, and people feel they have enough money in their pocket or just simply have had enough of worrying and have made the decision to go on holiday.’
Airports are reporting good numbers, with nearly 300,000 leaving from Heathrow, 270,000 from Gatwick, 200,000 from Stansted, 60,000 from Luton and 14,000 from Southampton.
From Scotland over 200,000 will be leaving via airports, with 60,000 leaving from Glasgow, 70,000 from Edinburgh and 25,000 from Aberdeen.
From the north and the Midlands, 100,000 will leave from Manchester, 12,500 passengers from Leeds Bradford and approximately 200,000 from Birmingham.
Other regional airports and ferry terminals will also be extremely busy over the weekend and Eurostar is reporting good passenger numbers with 80,000 leaving the country this way.
See also:
PwC reports consumer optimism for travel (05/03/2009)