Two-thirds – 66% – of people have said the cost of living in Ireland has influenced their decision when booking a holiday.
The finding forms part of Click&Go Holidays‘ latest Travel Sentiment Survey results for the second quarter of the year.
The survey also reveals that 72% have yet to book their 2025 holiday, but of those 85% are still planning to book in 2025.
With cost being a major factor for planning holidays in 2025 it is no surprise that 70% of people are either waiting for holiday prices to fall (39%) or feel like holiday prices are too high (31%). Other factors that respondents ranked as influencing their holiday choices are the heat in holiday destinations during peak summer month (51%), anti-tourism protests (43%), fear of the impact of US tariffs (46%) and current geopolitical issues (68%).
The survey highlighted that sun holidays are still the most popular destination with over half (52%) booking a sun holiday this year. Sun holiday prices overall decreased by 2% this year, with airfares falling by 13% but the average cost of accommodation rose by 9%.
Other holidays options are still popular, with city breaks taking a fifth of travellers (20%), cruises are preferred by 12% of respondents, while 7% plan to stay in Ireland. 8% of respondents are planning to go to either the USA, Disneyland Paris and other locations.
The remaining months of the year are expected to make up for travel bookings, as 49% of respondents are preparing to book their 2025 holiday in August/September and over a quarter (28%) looking to book their 2025 holiday from October to December.
Paul Hackett, CEO of Click&Go Holidays said: “What the survey results show is that there is growing financial uncertainty and people are trying to make hard decisions in regard to their spending, this could be affecting bookings of holidays in 2025. Many are waiting for the price of their holiday to fall before they book but this strategy is unfortunately unlikely to pay off.”
“Holiday trends and patterns have changed over the years. Travel across the summer months from May to October is more evenly spread. Travel in July and August is the most expensive, the resorts and destinations are busy and as we have seen last week subject to weather issues. The numbers travelling in May, September and October mirrors the volume of July and August. That said some people have to travel during school holidays and so long as that is the case we will continue to see strong travel numbers in the peak months and this is backed up by the passenger numbers at the airports.”
Mr Hackett added: “As we see from the survey there is still a strong appetite for a holiday abroad in 2025. We are also seeing steady sales on the continent so this delay could mean that choices become more limited while costs of accommodation and flights could rise further. If you’re still thinking about booking a holiday this year get in touch with us, either on our website or through our contact centre, and we’ll find you the best value getaway that suits your needs.”
