Research by travel insurance provider InsureandGo revealed 71% of UK adults believe many holiday hotspots in the Med will be too scorching to travel to by 2028.
Currently, travel insurance cover is not available to those who choose to cancel their holiday due to extreme weather conditions in their destination, which could lead to more holidaymakers turning to cooler climates in northern and eastern Europe in the coming years.
InsureandGo asked a sample of 2,077 adults which popular European travel destinations they thought would be too hot to visit in five years’ time.
Of the most popular European holiday destinations, the top five countries survey respondents said will become too hot to visit by 2028 were: Turkey (42%), Spain (41%), Greece (39%), Cyprus (35%) and Portugal (29%).
Some other European destinations that were of concern included Italy (27%), France (13%) and the UK (12%). However, few people saw hot temperatures to be a major issue facing Germany (6%), Hungary (6%), Poland (4%), Scandinavia (3%) and Switzerland (3%).
Garry Nelson, head of corporate affairs at InsureandGo Travel Insurance, said: "This is now the second year when holidaymakers have experienced extreme weather in southern Europe – and consumers are currently unable to claim on their insurance if they decide to cancel their holiday because of soaring temperatures.
"With blistering heat waves highlighting the climate emergency, our new research suggests some people may be starting to rethink their holiday destinations for future years and we could see a move to cooler climates if the acute heat and wildfires become an annual trend around the Med."
Temperatures across the Med have lingered in the high 30Cs and low 40Cs for more than a week now, while record temperatures have been recorded in Death Valley, California, of in excess of 55C.
Some US cities have reported sustained heatwave conditions for several weeks now too, including Phoenix, Arizona, where temperatures topped 110 fahrenheit (43C) for 19 consecutive days. It all follows a once in 200 years heatwave in parts of southeast Asia, notably in South Korea and parts of China.
