The British opt for holidays outside the European Union in the face of the Brexit stalemate – Thomas Cook

LONDON (Reuters) – British holidaymakers are favoring destinations outside the European Union after repeated Brexit delays have discouraged travelers from booking in advance and prompted them to look further ahead, the agency said on Monday. Thomas Cook.

Turkey and Tunisia are among the main beneficiaries of the reservation trend in non-EU countries, the firm said in a report.

Britain was due to leave the EU on March 29, but the deadlock in Parliament over the terms of Prime Minister Theresa May's agreement on Brexit delayed her departure. A new deadline of 31 October has been agreed with Brussels.

Thomas Cook, the world's oldest travel agency, said it was "clear that the lingering uncertainty surrounding the way and the timing of Britain's exit from the European Union has led many to delay their decision as to when and where they book their summer vacation ".

However, a majority of the 3,422 British holidaymakers surveyed by the company nevertheless reported being more likely to spend vacations abroad than last year, a quarter of them saying their priorities for Expenditures were higher than in 2018, compared with only 8% of them. it was lower.

"Great Britain may have unique moments from a political point of view, but our willingness to go abroad is clear," said Will Waggott, head of Thomas's Tourism Operations Department. Cook.

"The political turmoil had other effects and clearly translated into a shift to third countries."

Thomas Cook has stated that up to now, 48% of his package holiday bookings in the UK for this summer were destined for non-European destinations, an increase of 10 percentage points over the same period last year.

Turkey has overtaken Greece to become the second most popular destination, with Spain in the lead.

And a slight increase in the number of all-inclusive stays could reflect travelers' desire to "control" food and beverage costs, given the potential volatility of the pound, the company said.

Earlier this month, easyJet had warned that travelers were reluctant to book their summer holidays because of uncertainty about the future of Brexit and the decline in demand for tickets and therefore of price.