Travel Notes: Explore our own country and flight bargains in 2021
'Are we there yet?': After all the tribulations and turbulence to hit the travel industry over the past year, 2021 has finally arrived with more anticipatory fanfare than a Ryanair landing trumpet. Yes, as I file this column, another national lockdown looks imminent while caution and uncertainty loom on the back of new virus strains. But with vaccine rollouts gathering stream globally, there’s a renewed optimism that travel will return en masse by the second half of this year. Could we be spending our summers in the Algarve or Brittany while also enjoying a jaunt to Connemara?
From home travels to overseas adventures, 2021 is likely to be a landmark year in how we travel.
Regardless of what our crystal ball reveals for foreign trips, one travel trend is currently clear. Staycations are here to stay. After our love-affair with Irish tourism in 2020, fresh figures from Fáilte Ireland have revealed that 70% of us intend to take a short break within Ireland over the next 12 months. That figure rises to 76% when it comes to Irish families with children under sixteen.
In fact, with so many popular Irish destinations having booked up so quickly during last summer, and vaccines only appearing on the cards as recently as November, many Irish consumers have already booked — and banked — on spending their summer holidays on home turf. Destinations such as Wexford, Killarney and the Aran Islands will prove perennially popular but you can also expect lesser-trundled regions like Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands to receive more interest. And don’t forget Northern Ireland. With so many visitors from the ROI spending quality time in the six counties in 2020, expect more Northern exposure for the region this year.
When it comes to flying forecasts, Michael O’Leary has already stated that vaccines will not be compulsory for flying on Ryanair flights. However other airlines such as Qantas have announced that proof of a jab will be obligatory. Compulsory testing and/or proof of vaccines at some destinations may deter some travellers from taking to the skies, but this jittery outlook is seeing airlines offering cheaper long-haul fares in an attempt to fill seats. Aer Lingus fares to the US and Canada remain low; return flights from Dublin to Boston for this June are costing from as little as €310. These deals bundled with flexible cancelation policies ensuring passengers can fly at a later date, may well lure passengers to snagging a long-haul deal.
And who wouldn’t welcome a deal, a bargain or a silver-lining? With a foreign travel hiatus that may reach a minimum of 18 months, there’s a likelihood that many travellers will now invest in long-fingered bucket lists trips — after Covid has shown us that we may have a shorter window than we once figured when it comes to trips of a lifetime. 2021 may be year to go big or stay home.
Sustainable travel is going to be huge in 2021. And speaking of going green, Japan is pledging to be a carbon-neutral destination by 2050.
While it may be synonymous with sprawling concrete jungles, the country is positioning itself as one of the leading eco-travel destinations for 2021 where tourists can experience everywhere from the country’s first zero-waste village, Kamikatsu, (which even has no rubbish collection) to the dreamy new Treeful sustainable treehouse resort which is set to open in Okinawa this spring.
Thinking of an RV trip of a lifetime? IATA members and US experts, American Sky, are offering three new motorhome holidays itineraries for 2021 — all likely to appeal to travellers looking for that open-road adventure which is low on check-ins.
Routes include an epic road-trip from Texas to Las Vegas and a Pacific Northwest tour in Oregon, but I love the sound of their 12 night Cowboy Country & Yellowstone trip which costs from €1,859pp including flights and motorhome.
americansky.ie
There are some good news stories landing already. And of them is Aer Lingus’ recently announced new direct route from Dublin to Santorini, which takes off from May 1.
One of the most iconic of all Greek island destinations and world-famous for its higgledy-piggledy clifftop villages, Santorini fares are now available from €160 return. Just think of the savings on those ferry trips from Athens too!
While Europe’s train travel scene has been a little dormant for years, rail travel is on the ascendency for 2021.
Some of the Continent’s largest train giants are investing in new overnight trail routes which link passengers between some of Europe’s major cities, without losing a wink.
German, Austrian, French and Swiss national operators are on track to deliver 13 new routes, from a new Paris to Vienna route to an A-Z train linking Amsterdam to Zurich.
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