Summer holidays shunned to make savings

More than one in two British adults (56%) are approaching their yearly summer holiday with money worries on their mind, and one of four of these are even foregoing a summer holiday this year in order to save money.

The findings are from a new edition of the Austerity Britain series by elephant communications, a rolling research probe which looks at aspects of family life and people’s money habits in the current economic climate. The research was conducted for elephant by YouGov.

Last year the ‘stay-cation’ was a popular option, with many people choosing to stay at home and soak up the atmosphere of the Olympics and the Jubilee. This year the trend has continued, although not necessarily because of the appeal of another ‘Great British Summer’ but because of financial concerns.  

Of those Britons who will continue with plans to take a summer holiday, most cite spending quality time with family or de-stressing and switching off mentally as the main purpose of their holiday. The 35-44 age group were those most likely to want to spend quality time to reconnect with their families or partners, with 44% citing this as a reason, as opposed to only 15% of those aged 18-24.

Among those affected by the economic situation are families with three or more children. A summer holiday abroad was less likely for them, with only 8% of larger families planning a holiday abroad compared to a third of smaller families.

Full findings from the new edition of Austerity Britain, which tracks trends to this time last year will be published at the end of July.