lastminute.com data reveals trends for family summer holidays

Latest insights reveals details on destination popularity for best value for money

European OTA lastminute.com has revealed its latest Travel Horizons Report, just in time for the peak family holiday season.

The data has been analysed by a team of the firm's in-house analysts to find the travel trends for this summer from a family point of view for the five biggest countries in Europe. 

It looked at where holidaymakers are heading and which countries offer the best value for money.

Turkey, particularly Istanbul for a city break, and the Turkish Riviera for a beach holiday, made an incredible comeback from 2023 - and is vying with perennial number one, while Spain came out top for that all-important European family vacation share.  

Luca Concone, CEO of lastminute.com, believes Online Travel Agents (OTAs) provide “a great gateway” for families waiting to see what the holiday market looks like.

He said: “Families tend to be the biggest forward planners, however, OTAs also serve as a perfect option for those who were thinking about staying home until they check the weather forecast. 

"Now families don’t have to decide where they want to go this summer from a brochure in January, instead, they can wait and see which destinations offer the most bang for their buck in July and August. 

"The protection of packages, but with the flexibility to fly from anywhere to anywhere, and choose how long you want to stay sets us apart.”

It found 7 of the top 10 cheapest breaks available this summer to be island escapes - with Malta, Gran Canaria, Corfu and Sicily being the best value for money respectively.

For families of older children about to fly the nest, lastminute.com surveyed parents in the UK to find out where they would most like to travel with their children. New York city came top of the bucket list.

It revealed the most sought after destinations by country. The UK's came out as the Turkish Riveria, Tenerife and then Mallorca.

France was Marrakesh, Mallorca, then Crete, while Germany was Mallorca, London and the Turkish Riviera.

For Italy it was Sharm El-Sheik, Mallorca and Paris. Spain desired Tenerife, Mallorca and Gran Canaria.

Mallorca was the only destination to feature in all five top threes.

Top last-minute locations for family holidays showed to be Mallorca, Antalya, Barcelona, Crete and Paris.

Family city break destinations on the rise included Athens in top spot with a 54% year on year increase, Prague second at a 47% increase and Budapest in third (41%).