It over three years since the UK voted to leave the EU and in that time thousands of words have been written about what will happen if and when we leave. It’s possible that no other event has caused so much controversy or debate in our entire British political history and even after all those words no one can predict with any certainty what is going to happen over the coming weeks and months. Our new Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has committed us to leave by the 31st October with or without a deal. Parliament seems to be doing its best to block our leaving despite the result of the referendum and there will be some interesting developments between now and the end of October.
Normally you would expect such a level of uncertainty to have an adverse effect on people future planning but according to a survey of travel companies by ABTA, post Brexit bookings are 12% ahead of last year and only 2% of people have put off booking a holiday due to Brexit. In the UK it feels like most people are so tired of the debate that they are just carrying on as normal and are not letting any possible outcomes affect them.
Originally there was a lot of scaremongering by interested parties which may have affected peoples thinking but over time many of those bogus claims have been rebuffed. Initially there was a concern that flights from the UK would be affected and restrictions imposed but thankfully an Open Skies policy has been promised and as long as the UK reciprocates UK citizens wont require a visa although queues at passport control may become longer and it may take a little time to get through. The importance of retaining flights between the UK and Europe is appreciated by all parties as the economic benefits far outweigh any political considerations.
The only major effect as far as we can see is what will happen to the currency rate of exchange between the pound and the Euro. Already the GBP/EURO rate has fallen from approximately 1.26 when the referendum was taken to 1.10 which obviously puts up the price of a holiday. There are forecasts that when the UK does leave it may fall even further and should it ever reach parity then that may have an effect on bookings but again it’s just speculation at the moment. One of the outcomes of this is the growth of golfers looking for all-inclusive holidays which has triggered a big rise in bookings to Turkey and resorts offering such a package. Also, it maybe that people will still go on holiday but spend less when they get there.
Despite such an air of uncertainty we believe golfers will still want to play golf in the sunshine and as long as the Spanish Suppliers take note of the situation and resist the urge to increase prices the Costa del Sol will still be one of the most popular destinations for UK and Irish golfers.
Peter Renton
Glencor Golf Holidays