Staycations Increase in Popularity

More people are considering staying in the Britain as the result of the economic downturn. Over 60% of respondents in Watford and St. Albans have considered staying in the UK rather than travelling further afield.

This could be good news for traditional British holiday but many people we interviewed said that they need to get their marketing right. Interestingly, a considerably higher percentage of St Albans respondents compared with Watford said they were considering staying in the UK. Further research into this would be fascinating and important to holiday destination marketers.

Recession Hits Watford and St. Albans Holiday Maker Plans

As we move in to the traditional summer holiday period, the current economic climate is heavily influencing the travel decision of people in Watford and St. Albans. Adroit-e Research conducted a  field research last July 23rd and 24th asking people about their holidays and if the recession has affected their travel plans this year. 40% of people interviewed from both towns claimed that they were either downsizing their holiday or not going at all.

In a few weeks, employers and businesses will be having to cope with quite a lot of disgruntled workers  who rather than feeling refreshed may feel disappointed that their holidays were less than inspirational. There’s a slightly different response between the interviews conducted in St. Albans and and Watford. In Watford, more people were going without a holiday while in St. Albans, majority of the people affected were simply downsizing. 


All is not gloom and doom as well over a quarter of the respondents are taking more than 2 holidays this year. This is an interesting finding and could be explained in terms of the apparent widening gap between the ‘haves’ and ‘have nots’. 

Holiday Travel Loses its Green Sheen

Local holiday makers in St. Albans and Watford are rarely influenced by green issues when making their holiday travel plans. This is a significant finding from research carried out in St Albans and Watford with local shoppers over the weekend.

Research results reveal that only 17% of respondents said their travel plans were influenced by ecological issues. The responses in Watford and St Albans were virtually identical.

There’s little doubt that the recession is part of the scenario as 22% of the sample are either downsizing their holiday and 18% are not having a holiday because of the current economic climate. That’s important context.

However, more research needs to be undertaken about the effectiveness of the communication relating to green issues.