Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- Impact of COVID-19 on the holiday rental property market
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- Figure 1: Short, medium and long-term impact of COVID-19 on the holiday rental property market, 4 November 2020
- The market
- COVID-19 measures will result in losses, despite high demand during the summer period
- Holiday rental property segment will recover quicker than the wider domestic holiday market
- High growth potential for rural areas in the short term
- COVID-19 has impacted consumers’ financial wellbeing
- Companies and brands
- Safety & flexibility messages and local travel initiatives have remained key focus of company activity
- Experiences an increasingly important service
- Working holidays will become more common
- The consumer
- Booking levels had already been low prior to England’s lockdown
- Opportunity to tempt travellers to book their main 2021 holiday
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- Figure 2: Actual bookings and plans to book a holiday in the next three months, January 2019-October 2020 (fieldwork dates in October 2020: 8-19 October)
- Holiday rental properties offer greater competition to hotels as a result of COVID-19
- Holiday rental property users slightly skewed towards younger travellers
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- Figure 3: Types of holiday accommodation used in the past three years, August 2020
- Rural destinations are expected to gain market share at the expense of city breaks
- High demand for special-occasion trips expected post-COVID-19
- Airbnb by far the most used brand for holiday rental properties
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- Figure 4: Sources used to book last holiday rental property, August 2020 versus April 2019
- Customer service key differentiator in the holiday rental property market
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- Figure 5: Factors influencing choice of holiday rental property, by age, August 2020
- Travellers will want options to travel in a more responsible way
- High growth potential for holiday rental properties
- Opportunity to widen the customer base
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- Figure 6: Future interest in holiday rental property stays, August 2020
- Premium add-ons can help to attract luxury travellers
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- Figure 7: Perceptions of accommodation types – correspondence analysis, August 2020
Issues and Insights
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- Holiday rental providers that offer great customer service will be favoured post-lockdown
- Opportunity to offer self-serve activities and private experiences
- Add-on services will be the way to attract more luxury travellers
The Market – Key Takeaways
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- COVID-19 measures will result in losses, despite high demand during the summer period
- COVID-19 will accelerate growth in the holiday rental property segment
- Flexible cancellation policies and enhanced sanitisation procedures continue to be crucial
Market Size and Forecast – Domestic Holiday Rental Property Market
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- Impact of COVID-19 on the holiday rental property market
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- Figure 8: Short, medium and long-term impact of COVID-19 on the holiday rental property market, 4 November 2020
- COVID-19 measures will result in losses, despite high demand during the summer period
- Holiday rental property segment will recover quicker than the wider domestic holiday market
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- Figure 9: Forecast volume and value of the market for domestic* holiday rental property, 2015-25 (prepared on 4 November 2020)
- Market drivers and assumptions
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- Figure 10: Key drivers affecting Mintel’s market forecast, 2015-25 (prepared on 4 November 2020)
- Learnings from the last recession
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- Figure 11: Volume and value of the market for domestic holiday rental property, 2008-12
- Forecast methodology
Market Segmentation – Domestic Holiday Rental Property Market
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- Highest growth for rented flats and apartments in 2019
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- Figure 12: Volume and value of domestic holiday rental property, by property segment, 2015-19
- High growth potential for rural areas in the short term
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- Figure 13: Number of domestic trips taken in self-catering* property, by region, 2016-19
Market Drivers
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- Brexit worries add up to already high levels of uncertainty
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- Figure 14: Level of concern over the impact of the EU referendum, July 2016-September 2020
- COVID-19 has impacted consumers’ financial wellbeing
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- Figure 15: Changes in financial situation, October 2019-October 2020
- Fear of unemployment impacts consumer confidence
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- Figure 16: Financial confidence in the year ahead, October 2019-October 2020
Regulatory and Legislative Changes
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- Lockdowns and localised COVID-19 restrictions cause further disruption for the travel market
- Three-tier system planned to be reintroduced in England post-lockdown
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- Figure 17: Three-tier system of local COVID Alert Levels in England, as at 30 October 2020
- Fewer overseas destinations exempt from quarantine measures
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- Figure 18: Top 15 destinations for overseas holidays taken by UK residents, by volume in 2019
Companies and Brands – Key Takeaways
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- Travel companies will expand their self-catering accommodation offering
- Experiences an increasingly important service
- Working holidays will become more common
- Safety & flexibility messages and local travel initiatives have remained key focus of company activity
Key Players
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- Travel companies expected to further increase focus on self-catering accommodation
- Global intermediaries
- Airbnb
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- Figure 19: Airbnb’s number of global listings, recent activity and strategy, October 2020
- Booking.com
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- Figure 20: Booking.com’s number of global listings, recent activity and strategy, October 2020
- Expedia/Vrbo
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- Figure 21: Expedia/Vrbo’s number of global listings, recent activity and strategy, October 2020
- TripAdvisor Vacation Rentals
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- Figure 22: TripAdvisor’s number of global listings, recent activity and strategy, October 2020
- Domestic brands
- Awaze
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- Figure 23: Awaze’s number of global listings, brands, recent activity and strategy, October 2020
- Sykes Holiday Cottages
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- Figure 24: Sykes Holiday Cottages’ number of global listings and recent activity, October 2020
Launch Activity and Innovation
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- Safety and flexibility messages have remained key focus of innovation
- Airbnb’s Go Near initiative taps into higher demand for stays closer to home
- Domestic campaign to boost autumn and winter breaks
- Media and advertisements a bigger priority for TripAdvisor
The Consumer – Key Takeaways
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- Opportunity to tempt travellers to book their main 2021 holiday
- High growth potential for holiday rental properties
- High demand for special-occasion trips expected post-COVID-19
- Customer service key differentiator in the holiday rental property market
- Premium add-ons can help to attract luxury travellers
Impact of COVID-19 on Booking Intentions
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- Booking levels had already been low prior to England’s lockdown
- Opportunity to tempt travellers to book their main 2021 holiday
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- Figure 25: Actual bookings and plans to book a holiday in the next three months, January 2019-October 2020 (fieldwork dates in October 2020: 8-19 October)
Impact of COVID-19 on Confidence in Travel
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- Holiday rental properties offer greater competition to hotels as a result of COVID-19
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- Figure 26: Consumers’ confidence in holiday transport and accommodation types, 25 June-1 October 2020
Use of Holiday Rental Property
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- COVID-19 expected to fuel demand for rental houses
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- Figure 27: Types of holiday accommodation used in the past three years, August 2020
- Holiday rental property users slightly skewed towards younger travellers
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- Figure 28: Demographic profile of holidaymakers, by types of holiday accommodation used in the past three years, August 2020
Holiday Rental Property Location
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- Rural destinations are expected to gain market share at the expense of city breaks
- Over-55s
- Families
- 16-34s
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- Figure 29: Location of last holiday rental property booking, by age, August 2020
Holiday Rental Property Companions
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- High demand for special-occasion trips expected post-COVID-19
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- Figure 30: Companions on last holiday rental property stay, August 2020
Holiday Rental Property Booking Behaviour
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- Airbnb by far the most used brand for holiday rental properties
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- Figure 31: Sources used to book last holiday rental property, August 2020 versus April 2019
- Airbnb and generalist travel websites popular among younger travellers
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- Figure 32: Demographic profile of holidaymakers, by source used for last holiday rental property booking, August 2020
- More consumers are opting for properties that allow changes to the booking free of charge
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- Figure 33: Interest in flexible booking policies, August 2020 vs April 2020
- High potential for holiday rental providers to offer local activities/experiences
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- Figure 34: Interest in booking local activities/experiences – CHAID analysis, August 2020
Purchase Drivers when Choosing a Holiday Rental Property
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- Customer service key differentiator in the holiday rental property market
- Travellers will want options to travel in a more responsible way
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- Figure 35: Factors influencing choice of holiday rental property, by age, August 2020
- COVID-19 will accelerate demand for wellness travel
Future Interest in Accommodation Types
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- High growth potential for holiday rental properties
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- Figure 36: Usage of and future interest in holiday rental property stays, by age, socio-economic group and presence of children, August 2020
- Working holidays will become more common
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- Figure 37: Future interest by accommodation type, August 2020
- Opportunity to widen the customer base
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- Figure 38: Future interest in holiday rental property stays, August 2020
Perceptions of Accommodation Types
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- Holiday rental properties less likely to be associated with being hygienic
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- Figure 39: Perceptions of accommodation types – correspondence analysis, August 2020
- Premium add-ons can help to attract luxury travellers
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- Figure 40: Perceptions of accommodation types, August 2020
Appendix – Data Sources, Abbreviations and Supporting Information
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- Abbreviations
- Consumer research methodology
- Correspondence analysis methodology
- CHAID methodology
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- Figure 41: Holiday rental property – CHAID – Table output, August 2020
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