New research by the UK’s online independent travel agent has revealed that the travel chaos caused by the snow in December 2010 has put tourists off the idea of winter holidays, with two thirds saying they would now avoid booking for that time.

According to a new poll by one of the leading online independent travel agents in the UK, the delays and travel chaos caused by the snow in December 2010 has put Britons off the idea of going abroad during the winter months of this year and into next.

Sunshine.co.uk conducted the poll of 2,032 people in the UK, asking respondents questions surrounding their holiday preferences and whether or not the recent weather had had an impact on their travel plans for 2011.

When asked, ‘This time last year, would you have considered booking a holiday that fell during the winter months?’ 59% of people said ‘yes’ and a fifth, 21%, actually did. Of those who said they wouldn’t have considered a winter holiday, the majority said they just preferred summer vacations; but just one in ten, 12%, of these respondents said that they were put off the idea in case of winter travel problems.

The same question was asked to respondents, but this time in relation to travel this year; and opinions had evidently changed. Only 32% said they would now consider booking a holiday that fell during the winter period of 2011 and into 2012, whilst the remaining 68% said they would not.

When those who wouldn’t were asked why they were put off the idea, 76% said it had something to do with the problems tourists had faced when the snow hit in December 2010; claiming they would not want to face the same delays if the weather was the same again.

7% of the people polled by sunshine.co.uk were faced with disruptions to their travel plans when the ash cloud hit the UK last year, whereas 12% faced delays when attempting to travel during December 2009 and January 2010.

2% said they wouldn’t mind being delayed due to bad weather in the winter. When asked why this was the case, the majority claimed they would like to have more ‘unavoidable’ time off work.

Chris Brown, co-founder of sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings: “It’s not surprising that many people are now wary of winter travel, as planning to head abroad on a nice holiday and then being faced with delays for hours or even days at airports can be devastating. Summer travel is preferred by many, but even then things can happen to cause delays and problems; as shown by the ash cloud last year.

“It is more likely that you’ll have problems if you choose to go on holiday in December or January, because the chances of snow are so much higher; but deals in the winter tend to be a lot better. We’d advise to stick to booking when you want, whatever month it is, as whatever happens, your travel agent should look after you should things go awry.”

ΠΗΓΗ: TravelDailyNews.com