Top 10 Destinations 2012 - Summer Breaks, Ski & City Breaks

2011 was a challenging year for the whole travel and hospitality industry, affected by the economic downturn in Europe and instability in popular holiday destinations such as Egypt and Tunisia.  Some argue that holiday home owners could benefit from tough times like this as going self-catering could save a typical family of four hundreds of pounds.  Based on figures from 2011 and this year’s bookings so far on AlphaHolidayLettings.com, we have come up with our top 10 holiday rental destinations for 2012.

There are very subtle changes in the 2012 rankings.  Last year’s top three - Spain, France and Portugal - long time favourites of the Brits, continue to dominate the Top 10.  These well-established destinations are fully-geared for different types of holiday makers, with many resorts served by budget airlines direct from UK regional airports.  There is a wide range of self-catering accommodation to choose from as many British property hunters looking for a place in the sun have purchased in these countries.  The relatively short flight times also help ensuring that these destinations, in particular the Costas and the Algarves, will remain popular. 

Cyprus and Turkey have seen an invasion of British tourists and holiday home buyers in the last few years.  We predict that these countries will climb up the rankings in 2012, when many travellers are looking for something slightly different and are attracted by the warm climates and good value-for-money.  Paphos in Cyprus and the Turquoise Coast region in Turkey are the places to watch.

This year, Majorca has just dropped out of the top 10 and is replaced by Tenerife.  It has to be said that the Balearics and the Canaries both have similar appeal, and have been sliding down the list ever so slightly due to the rise in popularity of Cyprus and Turkey.  Other places that have just missed the top 10 are USA (top destination Florida), Egypt (Sharm-el-Sheikh) and Bulgaria (Sunny Beach).

Top Ski Location
Located on the French Alps, the Three Valleys region consists of eight ski resorts and is one of the largest ski areas in the world.  Meribel and the upmarket Courchevel are two of the more popular resorts here.  Chalets with two / three bedrooms are most in demand.  The ski season starts from early December and continues right through to early May.  Outside of the ski season rentals are expected to be fairly quiet.  A three bedroom chalet that sleeps up to 8 people is expected to achieve up to £2500 per week in peak months.

Top City Break
You might not consider Dubai as a typical city break destination, the mix of ultra modern city lifestyle, traditional Arab influence and sandy beaches has sent Dubai to the top of our city breaks list.  One / two bedroom apartments at Dubai Marina and The Palm Jumeirah island are the most popular.  These locations are well connected with the old town, new mega shopping centres and also the airport via the metro tram system.  Although Dubai is an all-year-round destination, high season runs from September to May, when temperature is not as high as other times of the year.  There is also demand from business travellers for smaller apartments all year round.  A typical two bedroom apartment at Dubai Marina is expected to get up to £1000 per week at peak season.  Most apartment buildings have access to on-site communal facilities such as swimming pool, gym, etc, which would be expected by your guests.  It is also essential to have facilities such as air-conditioning and cable TV, which should come pre-installed with most property purchases. 

Top Summer Beach
Costa Del Sol has long been a popular summer holiday destination, the strip starting from Marbella / Puerto Banus extending down to Estepona is the hot spot of the region.  These resorts are very family friendly and there is a huge variety of holiday villas and apartments on offer.  Properties that do well here are two or three bedroom properties close to the beach, bars & restaurants and other amenities.  Properties targeting golfers also do very well here as there are a number of championship golf courses in this area.  It is advantageous for apartments to have access to shared facilities such as swimming pool.  For villas, having a private pool is a big selling point.  Generally speaking, the holiday season starts from May until October, although the weather is reasonably nice outside of this period.  A good two bedroom apartment close to the beach could command up to £900 per week during July and August.

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