Families are taking advantage of this week’s teaching strikes in England by booking last minute family getaways in Cornwall, according to sales data from Parkdean Resorts.
The National Education Union has announced two national strike dates on Wednesday 5th and Friday 7th July, and families in England look to be making the most of the disruption as Parkdean Resorts’ bookings for the week commencing 3rd July 2023 are up by more than 8% across Cornwall, compared with the same week last year.
Parkdean Resorts is the UK’s leading holiday park operator, with 66 parks in some of the UK’s finest beauty spots, including eight in Cornwall – Crantock Beach, Holywell Bay, Lizard Point, Looe Bay, Newquay, Sea Acres, St Minver, and White Acres. Crantock Beach, near Newquay, has seen one of the biggest increases in bookings, up by 111% compared with the same week last year.
Xavier Vallee, Chief Customer Officer, Parkdean Resorts, said: “The teachers’ strikes have presented an unexpected opportunity for families to take a short break before the summer holidays begin. People are looking for great value holidays and a hassle-free experience, and with European holiday prices rocketing, it’s no surprise that there’s such huge demand for a long weekend in the UK. We expect many of our parks to be close to capacity over the weekend, and this unexpected influx of holidaymakers will be great news for the local economy in Cornwall which is so heavily reliant on tourism.”
Recent research by Parkdean Resorts identified the most frustrating aspects of international travel, explaining why British holidaymakers may be turning their backs on overseas travel. Airport waiting times were voted the most annoying part of going on holiday (69%), while the overall cost of holidays (52%), baggage restrictions (48%), overall travel time (46%) and cost of airport parking (42%) were the other most common frustrations.
The staycation market, meanwhile, is booming. The same research found that almost half the population (44%) are taking more domestic holidays than in previous years. With only 23% taking fewer, Parkdean Resorts estimates that 14.2m more Brits could visit UK destinations this year.
| Parkdean Resorts Bookings 2022 (w/c 04.07.22) vs 2023 (w/c 03.07.23) | |
| Region | % bookings increase year-on-year |
| Lancashire | 78% |
| Kent and Sussex | 59.1% |
| North East | 48% |
| Yorkshire | 40.4% |
| Wales | 33.3% |
| Essex | 29.6% |
| East Anglia | 19.9% |
| Scotland | 10.5% |
| Lake District | 10.5% |
| Cornwall | 8.6% |
| Isle of Wight | 3.4% |
| Devon | 1.2% |
| Dorset | -18.8% |
| GRAND TOTAL | 20.40% |
Top 10 biggest % increase in holiday park bookings YOY
| Park | Region | % Increase |
| Regent Bay, Morecambe | Lancashire | 173.3% |
| Ty Mawr, near Abergele | Wales | 133.3% |
| Valley Farm, Clacton | Essex | 120.5% |
| Crantock Beach, near Newquay | Cornwall | 111.1% |
| Pendine Sands, Carmarthenshire | Wales | 110.3% |
| Carmarthen Bay, Carmarthenshire | Wales | 107.7% |
| Skipsea Sands | Yorkshire | 97.1% |
| Summerfields, Great Yarmouth | East Anglia | 95.2% |
| Bideford Bay | Devon | 92.9% |
| Camber Sands | Sussex | 89.6% |
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