The Platinum Jubilee celebration brings with it a much-needed long weekend and, despite the disruption at UK airports due to staff shortages and the overselling of flights and holidays, Brits seem to be making the most of it.
Airlines UK, which represents the major British airlines has stated that the vast majority of flights will still go ahead as planned and search demands for tickets have soared.
Many are getting away prior to the bank holiday so they only use three days of their holiday leave. Pretty clever, right?
So, where are they off to?
Spain is the favourite destination this weekend for British holidaymakers. Mabrian Technologies, a travel analytics corporation, said that between March and May there were more than 12m searches for flights to Spain, with Italy, Turkey, Greece and Portugal following closely behind.
If you’re looking to escape the madness of the Jubilee weekend while still wanting to celebrate, there’s no better place to go than Malta – the only foreign country Queen Elizabeth II has ever called home.
Amanda Smith, 54, a travel agent for Hays Travel in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex described it as the perfect place to go this weekend, both for its royal connections and its 30-degree weather.
“Malta is particularly special to go to over this weekend because it is where the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Phillip, was stationed in his Navy days, and the royal couple lived there for a few years.
“Malta is thought to be Queen Elizabeth II’s favourite country as she felt she could live there without all the pressures, and I’m sure it reminds her of her early years with her husband.”
Although Spain is the most popular, Turkey boasts the cheapest room prices this weekend, at 82.45 euros. Smith believes the country’s lack of COVID-19 restrictions has also aided its popularity.
“A lot of people are still not vaccinated so we have seen a spike in people wanting to go to places where they don’t have to do any testing or forms. So that’s why we think Turkey has been our most popular destination for holidays this weekend.”
Additional reporting by Jack Francis.