2nd July 2019

 

 

Britons are set to splash £1 billion on items they forget to pack

for their summer holiday 

 

Britons spend on average six hours and 48 mins packing for their summer holiday but will forget to pack two essentials

 

Britons need to ensure they take extra spends on their summer break this year as two thirds (67%) of holidaymakers will forget to pack two essential items, despite spending nearly a day packing. This absent mindness will result in Britons spending a collective spend of £1 billion on replacing their much needed forgotten items.     

Holidaymakers will spend an average £35 replacing items they have left at home which includes items such as: the essential toothbrush, the phone charger which they cannot live without, sunglasses, perfume / aftershave, swimwear, sandals, toiletries, books, toys for the children and the essential sun screen.  

These findings have been revealed in a survey out today by Travelodge which surveyed 1,500 British adults on their holiday packing habits. This year, 69% of Britons are taking a Staycation and spending on average £874 on a week’s holiday. Collectively Britons will boost the UK economy by £40 billion by holidaying on British shores this summer.

However eight out of ten adults find packing for their holiday very stressful and are not packing efficiently which results in extra holiday spending on essential that they already have at home.

Just a fifth (20%) of Britons pack like a pro and use the rolling technique as recommended by experts. Over half of adults (52%) like to stack their clothes and over a quarter (28%) of us are ‘flingers’ and throw everything into the case and hope for the best. The table below details Britons packing style      

  

 

 

%

 

Packer

 

 

Format of Packing

 

52%

 

Stacker

 

 

Stack clothes and items starting with the biggest items at the bottom and working up to the smaller items

 

28%

 

Flinger         

 

Throwing everything into the case with no order or folding

 

20%

 

Roller

 

 

Roll clothes and arrange in an orderly manner

Other key findings from the survey revealed that a third of Britons over pack and   return home with up to three unworn outfits and three pairs of shoes that were not suitable for their holiday.  

Interestingly we have also become tech travellers and we will take on average three devices and gadgets to use during our holidays. A quarter of Britons also reported that they cannot leave home without packing their favourite tea bags.

The report also revealed Britons will spend on average £142 on new purchases for their holiday such as clothing, shoes, accessories, sunglasses or even a gadget.   

Shakila Ahmed, Travelodge Spokesperson said: “Annually over 18 million people stay with Travelodge and everyday our 567 hotel teams across the UK are helping customers find essentials they have forgotten.  The phone / tablet charger, toothbrush, toothpaste, shaver and umbrella are the most popular essential items holidaymakers forget to pack.  Essentials are usually forgotten because we are juggling other jobs whilst we are packing, spreading the process over several days or leaving it till the very last minute.”

To ensure holidaymakers spend money on the fun things during their holidays and not on forgotten items, Travelodge has created its Top Five Packing Tips as detailed below.  

Travelodge’s Top Five Packing Tips: 

List It                                                                                       

Save yourself time and effort and make a list of everything that you need for your trip and use this as a check list to review your case. To ease the process, choose one or two colour clothing schemes so that you can easily mix and match. Also plan your outfits before packing.

 

Roll It

Roll your clothes. This maximises space and minimize wrinkles. Pack heavier items of clothing at the bottom of the case and more delicate items on top.

 

Section It

Pack your clothing and items in sections so that you see what you have too much of and what you might have missed.

 

See It

Invest in see through travel bags and group small items together such as toiletries, chargers and beach items so that they are easy to find and all in one place in your case .

 

Charge It

Invest in one compatible charger for all your devices and take a portable battery pack to ensure you are charged throughout your trip.

 

ENDS

Notes to editors:

The survey was conducted with a sample of 1,500 British adults

The £1 billion figure was calculated via the following calculation

 

This year 69% Britons are taking a summer holiday. Source Travelodge Holiday Index May 2019

 

69% of UK adult population = 45,935,718

On average 67% of Britons forget two essential items when packing for their holiday. 67% of 45,935,718 = 30,776,931.06

 

Britons will spend £35 on average replacing essential items they have left behind

30,776,931.06 x £35 = £1.07719259 billion

Travelodge Holiday Index survey was carried out in May 2019 with a group of 1,500 adults. The £40 billion figure is calculated via this formula:

69% of adults are taking a Staycation break this summer

69% of British adult population (66,573,504) is 45,935,718

Average holiday spend is £874 x = 40,147,817,532

 

For further information, please contact:

The Travelodge Press Office

T: 01844 35 8703

E: pressoffice@travelodge.co.uk