The most secluded staycations in the UK

June 1, 2020

A leading holiday rental marketplace has revealed the most secluded British destinations for those keen to escape civilisation and social distance, as the coronavirus lockdown measures are eased. Travel experts from the marketplace have revealed that Aberdeenshire in Scotland is the best place to visit for those seeking complete social distance, followed by the Highlands and Suffolk. Following the Prime Minister’s announcement, the parent group of the marketplace analysed internal data across its holiday brands and discovered Cornwall and Devon are the most popular destinations this Summer.

A leading holiday rental marketplace has revealed the UK’s most secluded destinations for those who are looking to holiday in remote areas to social distance now lockdown measures are being eased.

According to travel experts from Snaptrip.com, Aberdeenshire is the most remote place to stay in the UK followed by the Highlands, also in Scotland and Suffolk. Aberdeenshire, located in North East Scotland, is a vast area that only has a population of 261,470 with many of those located in the city of Aberdeen itself.

The top five most remote areas in the UK are:

  1. Strathdon, Aberdeenshire
  2. Invergarry, the Highlands
  3. Sibton, Suffolk
  4. Tavistock, West Devon
  5. East Meon, East Hampshire

The full list of the UK’s most secluded areas can be found here.

The travel experts considered factors such as population per square mile, urban development, accessibility and distance between settlements in order to determine the most remote destinations in the UK. All locations in the top ten benefit from few main roads or motorways, limited commercial developments such as shopping centres and minimal housing.

Snaptrip Group, the parent company of brands including Snaptrip, DogFriendlyCottages.co.uk, Big-Cottages.com, LastMinute-Cottages.co.uk andLateRooms.com, analysed internal data following the announcement to see where Brits plan to spend their summers.

Cornwall and Devon are the most popular destinations, with increasing YoY interest in Somerset and Dorset, while the average booking cost across the UK is £947 (a 46% increase on the same date last year).

The most popular month for UK travel in 2020 is July, with more than 50% of bookings made for next month showing just how eager the British public is to get away. Forty percent of bookings were made by couples or families, while 58% of bookings were of parties of 3 or more adults, indicating holidaymakers are looking to use a staycation to reunite with family and friends after more than three months apart.

Across all of its marketplaces it reported an increase of 69% in traffic and 172% in bookings compared with this time last year, in addition to a 400% increase in revenue YoY. Compared to Monday, in anticipation of the PM’s announcement, traffic increased 54% and bookings 119%,while traffic increased by up to 381% at peak hours across the group after Boris Johnson made his announcement.

Matt Fox, CEO and co-founder of Snaptrip.com, said,

“With the Government now allowing Brits to go on domestic holidays from the 4th of July, many are rushing to book their Summer holiday. Modern life dictates a certain level of interaction, but there are places in the UK you can escape to if you choose.

“It’s no secret that it’s been a tough few months for the travel sector worldwide, so we welcomed the news from the Government yesterday that staycations will be allowed to go ahead in the next few weeks. And it seems the public did too! It’s important to remember that if anyone in your household is experiencing symptoms of Coronavirus that you follow advice to all self-isolate for 14 days and don’t travel.”