A BRADFORD district travel agent boss has given advice for holidaymakers as he expects a busy 2023 for bookings.

Tony Mann, director of Idle Travel based at Enterprise Five in Bradford Road, says there is an appetite for travel this year after his firm enjoyed its busiest year of trading in its now 40-year history in 2022.

He says people continue to book their sunshine breaks for 2023, with many adapting their choice of destinations to bag a bargain as the cost-of-living crisis continues to bite.

Mr Mann says destinations across Europe continue to be popular with people including Spain, Greece, Bulgaria and Turkey, with locations with water parks of particular interest.

But he added sites further afield are also proving popular for people looking for a sunshine break, with the likes of the Caribbean, Dubai and Australia also seeing a booking surge. Other locations including New York and Iceland have also seen a spike of interest.

Mr Mann says people are adapting when and for how long they are going away for as they looking to save money, but still have a ‘pent-up’ desire for a trip away following the travel restrictions during the pandemic.

He said: “I’m quite positive about 2023.

“Things like the cost-of-living crisis means people may adapt their holiday and go for less nights or go all-inclusive, so they know how much it will cost. The bookings for 2023 are already looking healthy. There is still a demand.

“Between Christmas and new year we were quite busy. It has picked up again.

Bradford Telegraph and Argus: New York is proving a popular holiday destination for 2023, according to a Bradford travel agent boss New York is proving a popular holiday destination for 2023, according to a Bradford travel agent boss (Image: Pixabay)

“For us to have a record-breaking year in 2022 after the last few years is crazy really. There is a lot of pent-up demand.

“People are wanting to do more touring. We have seen an interest in trips to Memphis and Nashville. People are revisiting their bucket lists. City breaks are proving important too.

“We are seeing people having gone from going away for 14 nights before, but are now going for nine or 10 nights.

“People can also choose a different month. If they have that flexibility that can be the key to saving money. There are still some good deals out there.

“New York is popular and Iceland is extremely popular for people at the moment.

“People can pick up a cruise from under £600.”

He says demand for his company has been spiked through social media with people from as far as Scotland booking their trips through them.

 

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