Due to an increase in the number of travellers choosing self-catering holidays and making independent arrangements on accommodation-only websites, private holiday home rentals are taking off. At the end of December the UK’s number one website, www.Holiday-Rentals.co.uk uploaded its 20,000th holiday home. The site has been established for 10 years and in the last few, has seen enquiries from travellers increase by over 50 per cent, year on year. Site visits now total over 8.5 million per year.

As industry analyst Mintel has observed, a growing number of Brits value the freedom and flexibility offered by self-catering accommodation. Mintel predicts that self-catering holidays will represent 62.2 per cent of overseas holidays in 2007. However, operators have reported a decrease in the number of self-catering packages, as more travellers now prefer to tailor-make their ideal holiday by booking each element of their trip separately online.

With an estimated 1.2 million Brits owning property abroad, and foreign property purchases continually on the rise, private rental accommodation now represents a significant part of the accommodation-only market and increasing numbers of travellers are discovering this new way to holiday. Renting a private property provides more space, privacy, flexibility and often more luxury pound for pound than other accommodation. It is also extremely cost-effective, often working out at a fraction of the price per person than hotels of a similar standard.
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