A TRAVEL AGENT has seen a huge spike in demand for ‘bucket list’ holidays to long haul destinations following the lifting of Covid-19 travel restrictions.

Holidaymakers are making up for being unable to travel freely throughout the pandemic by heading off to faraway hotspots such as America, Mexico, the Caribbean and the Maldives.

Long haul holiday packages are in such demand that the high volume of bookings for 2022 and 2023 have resulted in tour operators releasing dates for 2024 well ahead of the usual timescale.

Travel the Globe, an independent travel agent with bases in Barrow and Ulverston has experienced a spike in such bookings with many citing being unable to get away for so long as the main reason for choosing longer haul destinations.

Claire Milby, a director at Travel the Globe, said: “The rise in long haul holiday bookings is really interesting and they are proving to be just as, if not more, popular than your more typical holidays to the likes of Spain, Turkey and Greece for example.

“Because of the lockdowns during Covid and then the many restrictions on holiday following that, people are just desperate to get as far away as possible and invest in that holiday of a lifetime they may have been planning further down the line.

“We’ve noticed a huge spike in people wanting to visit the likes of New York or book up for safaris in South Africa because these types of holidays are on their bucket list and they feel that now is as good a time as ever.

“During lockdown, a lot of people missed out on celebrating special occasions such as big birthdays or wedding anniversaries, so there are a lot of retrospective celebrations and trips to be had!

“Holiday packages for 2024 are already being marketed which is unprecedented when we’re still selling for 2022 and 2023, but such has been the demand that people are wanting to book well in advance if they’ve been unable to get their desired choice next year.”

The team at Travel The Globe can be contacted via www.traveltheglobe.co.uk or by phone. For Ulverston call 01229 584472 or for Barrow call 01229 839502.