Britons in race to book villas amid competition from Europeans seeking to 'staycation'

British holidaymakers are in a race with native “staycation” French, Italians and Spanish to reserve foreign villas as bookings quadruple amid the expectation of “travel corridors” by July.

Companies specialising in villa rentals have seen increases of up to 350 per cent in bookings in the past week.

But the British families are facing potential shortages because the French, Italian and Spanish families have got in first and booked them for “safe-cations” instead of risking going abroad themselves.

Oliver’s Travels, which manages some 6,000 villas and holiday homes, said 35 per cent of its bookings for villas in France had been taken by the French, up from five per cent in normal years.

The same is happening in reverse in the UK with 95 per cent of UK bookings bookings taken by UK customers, up from 80 per cent normally.

Booking to France are up by 357 per cent, year on year, and bookings to the UK are up by 288 per cent, year on year.

Oliver Bell, managing director of Oliver’s Travels, said: "Before this massive surge from the UK over the last few days  we were looking at about 40 per cent of our bookings going to domestic markets. For example: the French booking chateaus, the Italians booking a Tuscan farmhouse.”

Villas or holiday homes have grown in popularity this Summer because it gives families a chance to create “bubbles” that minimise the risk of infection that might come with mixing in hotels, campsites or other bigger venues.

Mr Bell said: “There still is availability but it is rapidly going. We are probably booking at about four times the rate we would expect to at this time of the year, compared to last year.

“It is going so quickly we are definitely having lots of our customers saying: ‘I was just looking at that villa and now within the hour it has just gone to someone else.’ We are advising people to put holds on date whilst they get their group sorted.”

Dave Woollcott, commercial director for James Villa Holidays said there was a boom in “staycations.” "The Portugese are booking the Algarve and the mainland Spanish customers booking down to go to the Costas," he said. 

Ginnie Phillips, managing director of the Villa Agency which rents villas in Portugal and Spain, said many holiday home owners had been unable to use them out of season because of lockdown - and were now keeping it for themselves this summer rather than renting out.

“Because Covid-19 hit, when they would normally be there and using their own property, they are now using it in the peak times,” she said.   “Villa holidays especially are having a bit of a revival because people can stay away from other people.  It’s a way of having a holiday and not having to share facilities and go to buffets and so on.”