Could Your Holiday Be Cheaper Next Year?

Two major pieces of news announced at the end of November may bode well for your 2016 holiday. Firstly, Russia announced its intention to 'cease tourist relations' with Turkey after a jet was shot down near the Turkish-Syrian border. Currently around 4.5 million Russian tourists visit Turkey annually, which is about twice as many visitors as from the UK. While this could drive down holiday prices, it could also be bad news for beach hotels and resorts in the country.

Worldwide travel alert

The second piece of news came as the US State Department released a 'worldwide travel alert' following the Paris terror attacks, advising citizens to avoid crowded places such as cities. Hotels in Paris saw an immediate surge of cancellations from American visitors. With many Americans already nervous travellers, it looks increasingly likely that a number of them will avoid Europe next year. This could have an impact on European cities, as American tourists spend heavily and many luxury hotels could suffer as a result.

Cheaper breaks for you

Many top hotels in Brussels and Paris − two of the cities most impacted by the terror attacks − have pledged to maintain their prices for now; however, some five-star hotels on popular hotel site booking.com are already offering substantial discounts on hotels for the coming weeks. If the expected number of American tourists decide to avoid Europe in 2016 and Russians travellers steer clear of Turkey, we could expect these discounts to take place across the continent on an even wider scale, according to those in the know.

What does this mean for your holiday?

You might be able to take advantage of the current discounts if you are looking for a short break in Europe right now, with hotels across the board in Paris offering discounts and experts urging people not to let the recent terror attacks keep them away from the city. For next year, we will have to wait and see what happens; however, if things continue along the same path, you could be looking at a substantial discount on your 2016 holiday. If you are planning on booking a city break to Brussels, Paris or even Istanbul, it might be worth waiting to see what news the new year brings in terms of discount and travel trends, as you could find yourself spending a lot less than you think on hotel accommodation and flights.