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Uber detects uptick in UK holiday demand

Uber detects uptick in UK holiday demand

Airport trips on the Uber app have more than quadrupled since travel restrictions were first lifted in May, with numbers increasing month-on-month despite summer holidays being over for schools.

Monthly Uber trips to airports in the UK have soared by 328 per cent between May and now, with an increase in trips using Uber’s Reserve feature as holidaymakers schedule rides in advance to give them peace of mind.

Data from Uber showed that 06:00 is the most popular travel time, with Friday the most popular day to start a holiday.

Despite September traditionally being a quieter month for holidays, trips were up versus August, and a nationwide poll of more than 2,000 full-time workers suggested that Brits are in search of a winter sun break as the weather at home turns cool and rainy.

The average worker has 11 days of holiday left to take (58 per cent of people said they have more holiday left to take this year than at the same point in 2019), meaning a total of 405,168,000 days of annual leave have yet to be taken across the UK.

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With just ten per cent of people having gone abroad this year, some 55 per cent said they’re now ‘desperate’ to board a plane and see some sunshine.

A massive 76 per cent of people haven’t been abroad since 2019 (34 per cent haven’t been abroad for three years) and just 19 per cent claim they’d prefer a staycation.

Perhaps then it’s no surprise that 57 per cent of those polled said they’d be travelling abroad in the next six months, with 28 per cent planning two or more breaks.

With the easing of travel restrictions over the weekend, a majority (51 per cent) say they feel more confident travelling abroad now than at any other point in the pandemic.

Ash Kebriti, general manager for the UK & Ireland, Uber, said: “With travel restrictions easing there’s no better time to escape abroad, especially as the days are getting colder.

“We’ve seen airport trips soar over the past few months as passengers use the Uber app to make sure they have a safe, stress-free journey.”