Nearly half of all UK holidaymakers say Brexit uncertainties have made them cautious about booking, new research by Mintel has found.
A survey was carried out among 2,000 people in November, before the delay to the original 29 March Brexit date.
It found that 43% said Brexit had made them wary of booking, while uncertainty around exchange rates meant 30% said they were more likely to book an all-inclusive holiday in 2019.
Mintel travel analyst Marloes De Vries said: “While taking a holiday remains a clear priority for Brits, Brexit and economic uncertainties are bringing unwanted storm clouds over the holiday market.”
De Vries added that as well as all-inclusives, “lower-cost destinations, such as Turkey and Tunisia, are likely to be the industry winners”.
“That said, the Brexit delay could boost summer holiday bookings given that consumers will be more reluctant to commit to trips later in the year.”
Mintel revealed a strong interest in multigenerational holidays among parents, with 77% of young parents aged 16-34 saying they are interested in taking them. In contrast, the 55-plus group are less enthusiastic, with just a third of them expressing interest.
England is the most considered destination when it comes to multigenerational travel (60%), while roughly three in 10 holidaymakers interested in taking a multigenerational holiday would contemplate Scotland (31%) or Wales (28%).
The poll also highlighted the rise of special interest trips built around hobbies and activities. Mintel found 62% of UK adults have taken a break specifically to pursue a hobby or interest.
In the past five years, 17% of adults have taken a holiday to pursue a hobby or interest, with 13% taking a physical activity or adventure holiday.
Special interest holidaymakers are most likely to build their trips around history and culture (30%) exploring food and drink (21%), wildlife watching (17%) and physical activities (15%).
Meanwhile, some 26% of adults have been on holiday specifically to pursue a creative activity such as photography, arts and crafts, performing arts or cooking/baking.
Mintel concludes that wildlife-watching holidays have the biggest growth potential, showing a 20 percentage-point gap between previous participation (17% of adults) and future interest (37%).