There were already signs last summer that heat waves were changing the nature of tourism across European cities.on how wildfires and overheated airport tarmacs were causing travel chaos with travelers beginning to choose cities with cooler temperatures or to travel outside of the traditional peak season.
For this summer, Massachusetts-based EF Go Ahead Tours has seen bookings to Scandinavia more than double in the past three months compared to last year and by more than 50% compared to the summer of 2019. Likewise bookings to the U.K. & Ireland are up 50% this August compared to last, and up 200% compared to August 2019, pre-pandemic.
Whilst this might just be an indication of an increase in travel generally, the company is also reporting more bookings to warm European countries like Italy, Spain, and Portugal outside of the the warmest months, which hasn't been the case in the past—travel to Italy from February to March was up by 175% compared to the same period before the pandemic in 2019.
Jessica Trammell, Vice President of Marketing says that"travelers are eager to spend their summers exploring while avoiding the thick of the European heat. The U.K. and Ireland are popular destinations this summer as their climates can be more comfortable than other parts of Europe while still offering unique, lush landscapes and historic city sites."
If you are looking for further inspiration, tour company Viator has also published its top ranked and visited sites across Europe, with many of its highest ranking experiences based in England, Ireland or Iceland, including a ghost tour in York, England and a food tour of Iceland's capital, Reykyavik.