Europe heatwave: British tourists undeterred by rising temperatures

Harriet Sinclair
Tourists take shelters from the sun with umbrellas as they walk near Fountain of Neptune and Piazza Maggiore, during a heatwave across Italy as temperatures are expected to rise further in the coming days, in Bologna, Italy July 18, 2023. REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Tourists take shelters from the sun with umbrellas during the heatwave in Italy. Brits have not been deterred by the sun and are continuing to travel to affected areas, travel agents say. (Reuters) (Claudia Greco / reuters)

The heatwave sending temperatures across Europe soaring into the 40s and sparking wildfires in some parts of the continent does not appear to have deterred Brits from taking holidays - with travel agents confirming bookings are rising along with the mercury.

The extreme weather - which is being caused by anticyclone ‘Charon’ - is seeing some areas of Europe hit record-high temperatures, with Sardinia and Sicily predicted to hit 48C and various areas in Italy, Greece and Turkey under weather warnings.

Despite European Travel Commission (ETC) data showing the number of people hoping to travel to the Mediterranean region in June to November has already fallen 10% compared to last year, there have been few cancellations from Brits who have booked vacations in scorching destinations.

People cool off at the Piazza del Popolo, during a heatwave across Italy, as temperatures are expected to rise further in the coming days, in Rome, Italy July 18, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli
People cool off at the Piazza del Popolo, during the Charon heatwave - which is expected to see temperatures across the continent hit record highs this week. (Reuters) (Remo Casilli / reuters)

Indeed, Britons in particular have booked fewer holidays at home and more in the Mediterranean, often many months in advance, as they continue to crave post-lockdown beach escapes, Sean Tipton of British travel agent group ABTA, told Reuters.

An agent with Abbotts Travel in London told Yahoo News: "We've had no trips cancelled - people are still making bookings at the moment, even with the weather.

"A lot of people have already booked now for the summer so we're seeing more for September and October, but we still have some people coming for late bookings."

A woman pours water on a man near the Colosseum, during a heatwave across Italy, as temperatures are expected to rise further in the coming days, in Rome, Italy July 18, 2023. REUTERS/Remo Casilli
Tourists and locals have been advised to stay cool during the heatwave - but brits are continuing to fly into heat hotspots. (Reuters) (Remo Casilli / reuters)

And while many Brits have expressed concerns over potential flight cancellations due to the heat, they don't appear to have been deterred by the temperature itself.

"People are still making bookings - to Greece, Italy and Turkey," one agent with World Holiday Vibes said. "We haven't really seen anyone make any cancellations - British people are usually booking European destinations because of the heat so that has stayed the same this summer."

Post-pandemic, more people appear keen to travel, with a report from ETC showing a travel sentiment of 75% between June and November this year, compared with just 68% who said they were likely to travel during the same period last year.

And of those plans, 53% involved travel to another European destination, with four out of the top five European travel destinations for Brits (Spain, France, Italy, Greece and Germany) currently experiencing extreme temperatures as a result of the Charon heatwave (which was named by the Italian Meteorological Society after the three-headed monster that features in Dante’s "Inferno").

Meanwhile, the extreme heat is expected to continue - with weather forecasters predicting that the coming week could see temperatures in parts of Italy and Greece hit 48.8C (the highest temperature ever recorded in Europe) or above.

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