Published on Wednesday, July 1, 2020

Survey reveals most-hunted travel brands during lockdown

Jet2holidays was the most searched for package holiday company during the lockdown, according to research by consumer site money.co.uk.

It said that online searches for Jet2holidays during April and May were up by 178%.

Tui came second in the survey, with a 71% rise in searches, followed by First Choice, up 56%.

However, many people looking for Tui holidays were probably searching for its retired brand 'Thomson', which saw a 55% increase making it the fourth most-searched-for brand, even though the name was ditched in September 2017.

Thomas Cook came eighth in the table, even though it collapsed last September.

EasyJet Holidays was in fifth place, with a 53% increase, British Airways Holidays came sixth in the survey, but the number of searches fell 9%, and Virgin Holidays came seventh following a 17% drop in searches.

Lastminute.com, Expedia, Opodo, Kuoni, Princess Cruises, Viking Ocean Cruises and Riviera Travel were among a number of other travel brands to see a fall in interest during the pandemic, according to money.co.uk.

Its Brand-A-Lust survey took the top companies from YouGov's Popularity Ratings and applied Google Trends and Google Search Volume data to reveal the most searched for brands during lockdown.

The most searched for travel brand overall was Butlin's, with 186% more searches in April and May than previously.

The top luxury brands were James Villa Holidays, up 98%, and Sandals Resorts, up 92%.