Car Hire on Holiday on the Up

Oct. 20, 2011 - PRLog -- A new study by a leading online independent travel agent in the UK has revealed that car hire overseas by UK holidaymakers is rising, with more people braving foreign roads this year than in 2010. When looking into reasons why, ‘extra money available’ was the main contributing factor to an increase in car hire.

It appears that more and more British holidaymakers are braving the roads overseas whilst on holiday, as a new poll by the UK’s leading online independent travel has revealed that car hire on holiday is increasing amongst tourists from the UK.

www.sunshine.co.uk carried out the study as part of ongoing research into the holiday habits and preferences of British holidaymakers. 1,199 UK adults took part in the poll, each of whom had been on holiday abroad at least once in 2010 and once in 2011. Respondents were asked questions about their holiday last year, compared to this year.

When asked, ‘Did you hire a car on any of your holidays abroad in 2010?’ just a fifth, 19%, of the respondents who took part in the study answered ‘yes’. The respondents were then asked ‘Have you hired a car on any of your holidays so far this year (2011)?’ to which more, 38%, answered ‘yes’.

The respondents who hired a car in 2011, but didn’t do so on their holiday(s) last year in 2010 were asked by sunshine.co.uk to explain their reasons for this. According to the poll, the top reasons for more people hiring a car abroad in 2011, rather than in 2010, were as follows:

•   More money to spend on holiday add-ons in 2011   22%                
•   Car hire not required on last holiday                         19%
•   Used for transfers to and from airport                      17%
•   No particular reason                                                   15%
•   Got a good deal with booking                                     9%

Of those who had previously hired a car on holiday, either in 2011 or 2010, 79% felt it had ‘enhanced’ their holiday experience, whilst 6% felt it ‘wasn’t worthwhile’. Total respondents were asked if they thought they would hire a car on a holiday in 2012, if applicable, to which the majority, 52%, said ‘probably’.

Chris Brown, co-founder of sunshine.co.uk, commented on the findings;

“Hiring a car on holiday can really help you to make the most of your time away, as you get to go places you might not have necessarily been able to get to without it. Therefore, it’s good to see that car hire by UK holidaymakers is increasing in popularity.

“The fact that the majority of respondents who had hired a car on one of their last holidays said it had made their experience better, just goes to show what a good idea it is. It also often means you don’t have to worry about getting to and from the airport and also, fuel is a fair bit cheaper abroad, so you really can go far for the money you pay.”

LINK http://www.sunshine.co.uk

ENDS

For more information, contact Shannon Haigh of 10 Yetis PR Agency on 01452 348211 or email Shannon@10yetis.co.uk

Editors Notes

sunshine.co.uk is the UK's leading online independent travel agent and was founded by Chris Brown and Chris Clarkson, the same people behind Holiday Watchdog which was bought by TripAdvisor in February 2008 for an undisclosed amount of money.

Chris Brown of sunshine.co.uk was a ‘Secret Millionaire’ in the series on Channel 4 that began in October 2010.

Sunshine.co.uk offers low cost holidays and budget flights to destinations all over the world as well as great deals and discounted hotels.

TravelMole recently voted sunshine.co.uk as the best Travel Agency in the 2010 web awards.