The staycation boom in the South West is set to continue well into the autumn, according to new figures from St Austell Brewery.
The Cornwall headquartered hospitality business said that their hotel bookings in the West Country have more than doubled for the period from September to November 2021. They point to this being a significant increase in regional hotel bookings for that three-month period compared to 2019, the last year before the Covid pandemic.
St Austell Brewery owns 180 inns, pubs and hotels across the South West. These include the Pedn Olva in St. Ives and The Atlantic in the Isles of Scilly which are close to being fully booked until December.
Kevin Georgel, chief executive of St Austell Brewery, said: “The ongoing uncertainty around international holidays and concerns about the changeable overseas travel list means holidaymakers are continuing to opt for the safer, more reliable option of a UK holiday. Concerns around the environment and everyone playing their part to prevent climate change is also encouraging more guests to book domestic holidays and minimise the number of holidays abroad.
“We also believe a re-discovery of the delights and adventure that the West Country has to offer, from beautiful coastlines to fantastic locally sourced food and drink, is driving the trend. British tourists have flocked to us over the last few months and are experiencing first-hand that there is no place quite like Cornwall and the South-West for the perfect escape.“
The firm, which is also the leading distributor of beers, ciders, wines and spirits in the region, said that the autumn months can still be warm despite July and August usually being a peak period for tourism in Devon and Cornwall and tourist hotspots such as St Ives, Padstow and Falmouth are often less crowded.
