Press Centre
Donkeys on local beaches? Get real!
27th November 2007
The travel industry has been altered forever in the last few years. No longer is a weekly trip in the summer months to Skegness and Blackpool adequate for a generation bombarded with choice. Overseas destinations are easier to reach, largely down to improvements in technology, from faster and cheaper planes to the immediacy of the internet. Travellers are more knowledgeable about the world and subsequently are more refined about their touring plans. Adventure holidays, hobby holidays, cruise tours, extreme sports: it's all there if people want it. Candy Floss and crowded beaches on cloudy days may have once seemed attractive, but now seem as diverse as a donkey ride on Scarborough Beach.
One demographic clearly taking full advantage of the definite shift in attitudes is the over-55s. Indeed, a high proportion of the over-50s are stretching their wings and have decided that far-flung places hold a certain allure for them. In a new report by Alliance & Leicester (A&L), 54 per cent of those polled claimed that travelling was high on their agenda with this percentage wishing to carry out more long-distance jaunts. Additionally, 11 per cent explained that they would prefer to go travelling alone, cementing the notion that the over-55s are more bold and assertive than before.
Possible destinations were varied and disparate, the bank said, from Africa to China, New Zealand and Australia, to the US. These people have no desire to simply give up the game and retire quietly, noted A&L official Emma Walkley. "The desire of the over-50s to see more of the world is clear - this is not an age group that plans to sit back and enjoy a slower pace of life. Quite the opposite in fact, with long-haul destinations and a thirst for adventure firmly on the agenda," she commented.
But more generally, how have travel opportunities changed? Well, online developments have meant that there is a fantastic array of choice for holidaymakers, the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA) has stated. Such providers have had to adapt and change the services they offer with the arrival of the digital age, the organisation said. Package holidays have decreased in price as competition has increased online. Internet booking portals are seemingly endless, whether it be no-nonsense, cheap airlines or accommodation comparison sites.
On top of boosting accessibility and ease of booking, it seems technology has also had a more unexpected effect, the ABTA claimed - and that is to boost high street service, because many consumers do not wish to see the familiarity of actual customer services go out the window. Thus, agents have had to offer more attractive services, have gone "up-market" and have refocused onto the luxury sector. "We have become more activity/adventure [holiday] driven, making booking more tricky as well. It has opened up different destinations, such as Costa Rica for example, and places in South America, are becoming much more accessible," commented spokesperson for the ABTA Frances Tuke. Moreover, British people are more confident than ever before, the body asserted.
It seems the over-55s are fully displaying this confidence and taking advantage of increased pickings. But, travellers must take care and the time to consider a viable travel insurance plan so they are covered if anything goes awry. There are over-55s travel insurance products that are cheap and easy to purchase. Once such insurance products are in the bag then those days away in the sun can be enjoyed with more freedom.
So while the lure of the glorious plains of Bognor may have been too strong to resist, now more attractive possibilities have come to the fore. Crumbling seaside resorts are great for many things, but for the over-55s, times have changed. Scarborough or Sun? Sun. Great Yarmouth or great luxury? Great luxury.
