The Great Easter Bank Holiday Getaway 2025
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dhewitt@abta.co.uk Thu, 04/17/2025 - 01:00
An estimated 2.2 million holidaymakers to head overseas
ABTA – The Travel Association estimates 2.2 million British holidaymakers are set to head overseas over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend of 18-21 April, with Good Friday the busiest day for travel.
With the weather in the UK looking to be mixed, those heading off overseas will benefit from sunshine and temperatures in the early twenties in our favourite holiday spots. ABTA members are reporting strong bookings for mainland Spain, the Balearic and Canary Islands, Greece, Turkey and, for long-haul travellers, Thailand.
Many more are taking advantage of the four-day weekend to spend time on a cultural and fun city break with Dublin, Istanbul, Amsterdam, Budapest, Rome, Paris and Dubai leading the way.
Airports in the South East are reporting strong numbers with hundreds of thousands leaving from Heathrow and Gatwick, 187,000 from Stansted and 105,000 from Luton.
Other airports will also be busy, with 160,000 leaving from Manchester, Birmingham expecting its busiest ever Easter period and thousands departing from the Scottish airports.
Ferry terminals and the Channel Tunnel will also be extremely busy with thousands also booked to travel by Eurostar this weekend.
Mark Tanzer ABTA Chief Executive said:
“Easter is always one of the busiest times of year for the travel industry with millions taking advantage of the long weekend to take an overseas beach or city break. Over the past few months, ABTA members will have been working hard to help travellers secure the ideal Easter break.
“As always the roads and public transport will be very busy, so always check for any planned engineering works and leave plenty of time to get to your departure port.”
Notes to editors
ABTA is a trade association for UK travel agents, tour operators and the wider travel industry. We’re the largest travel trade body, with over 4,300 travel brands in membership who have a combined annual UK turnover of over £40 billion. We work closely with our members to help raise and maintain standards and build a more sustainable travel industry, and provide travellers with advice, guidance and support.
Our members sign up to a code of conduct and commit to agreed service standards and fair trading. When you need clear travel information, and accurate and impartial advice relating to your trip, we’re here for you. When you book with an ABTA member, reliable advice comes as standard. This means that booking with our members brings peace of mind.
All this together means we help you travel with confidence. www.abta.com
Continue reading...
Full Page image

dhewitt@abta.co.uk Thu, 04/17/2025 - 01:00
An estimated 2.2 million holidaymakers to head overseas
ABTA – The Travel Association estimates 2.2 million British holidaymakers are set to head overseas over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend of 18-21 April, with Good Friday the busiest day for travel.
With the weather in the UK looking to be mixed, those heading off overseas will benefit from sunshine and temperatures in the early twenties in our favourite holiday spots. ABTA members are reporting strong bookings for mainland Spain, the Balearic and Canary Islands, Greece, Turkey and, for long-haul travellers, Thailand.
Many more are taking advantage of the four-day weekend to spend time on a cultural and fun city break with Dublin, Istanbul, Amsterdam, Budapest, Rome, Paris and Dubai leading the way.
Airports in the South East are reporting strong numbers with hundreds of thousands leaving from Heathrow and Gatwick, 187,000 from Stansted and 105,000 from Luton.
Other airports will also be busy, with 160,000 leaving from Manchester, Birmingham expecting its busiest ever Easter period and thousands departing from the Scottish airports.
Ferry terminals and the Channel Tunnel will also be extremely busy with thousands also booked to travel by Eurostar this weekend.
Mark Tanzer ABTA Chief Executive said:
“Easter is always one of the busiest times of year for the travel industry with millions taking advantage of the long weekend to take an overseas beach or city break. Over the past few months, ABTA members will have been working hard to help travellers secure the ideal Easter break.
“As always the roads and public transport will be very busy, so always check for any planned engineering works and leave plenty of time to get to your departure port.”
Notes to editors
ABTA is a trade association for UK travel agents, tour operators and the wider travel industry. We’re the largest travel trade body, with over 4,300 travel brands in membership who have a combined annual UK turnover of over £40 billion. We work closely with our members to help raise and maintain standards and build a more sustainable travel industry, and provide travellers with advice, guidance and support.
Our members sign up to a code of conduct and commit to agreed service standards and fair trading. When you need clear travel information, and accurate and impartial advice relating to your trip, we’re here for you. When you book with an ABTA member, reliable advice comes as standard. This means that booking with our members brings peace of mind.
All this together means we help you travel with confidence. www.abta.com
Continue reading...