A leading UK cruise retailer has reported a surge in bookings from people looking for overseas cruises which sail from the UK, following on from the latest BA strike announcement.

Cruise118’s Sailfromuk.com site has been inundated with last minute requests from people looking for an alternative way to get abroad this half term, with a rise in last minute bookings which are up by 145 per cent.

People from Lancashire have been most keen to find an alternative holiday, with 28 per cent of the last minute bookings made coming from the region.  Yorkshire is a close second with a 22 per cent share of late bookings coming from the area, and a 15 per cent share coming from holidaymakers from the North East looking for an alternative get-away.

Mal Barritt, director of SailfromUK, said:  “People are coming to us almost in desperation – they want to go away for a relaxing trip abroad, but know that they can’t guarantee they’ll get there without enduring complete chaos.

“We saw a surge in people looking for SailfromUK holidays when the ash cloud hit, and this latest rise in bookings shows that Brits are getting well and truly fed up of ongoing flight issues and are opting for a much simpler break which departs from the UK without going near the airport.

“Holidays are precious things, particularly in this recessional time, and people are sick of having their valuable family time disrupted.  Feedback from our customers is that they just want to relax and get away from it all, and airports just aren’t the place to do that at the moment.

“Sailing abroad from the UK is a hassle free way of getting some sunshine, and with destinations all over the world people are realising it’s a real alternative to the traditional package holiday.”