Staycation rip-off! Prices for UK holidays this summer ROCKET by up to 100%

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A staycation stampede has seen lockdown-weary Britons accuse holiday cottage firms of doubling prices and charging more than £1,000 for short breaks after the roadmap to end England’s third shutdown was unveiled.

Price rises of 25 to 100 per cent are being imposed by companies running websites marketing thousands of cottages on behalf of owners around the country, it is being claimed by eagle-eyed customers.

Sykes Cottages, which is one of the biggest accommodation providers with over 15,000 properties, has been accused of trying to take advantage of families desperate to escape the brutal national lockdown. 

Concerns were raised by the chairman of the South West Tourism Alliance, Alistair Handyside, who operates three holiday cottages in Devon. At the same time, critics of Sykes alleged huge price increases on Facebook. 

The allegations have been denied by the company, with a spokesman insisting that it would be wrong to accuse it of changing its prices because of the coronavirus pandemic. 

It comes as campsites and holiday lets across Britain saw a surge in bookings as Prime Minister Boris Johnson unveiled his roadmap out of lockdown, with some rentals selling out within minutes.  

However, holidaymakers have been told not to book foreign trips this summer amid uncertainty over the speed at which lockdown can be eased, with one SAGE adviser admitting he would not go abroad until 2023. 

One woman looking for accommodation close to the Dorset coast posted: ‘Watch out ‘Sykes Price Hikes’ !!! The cottage we booked for last April – 2020 – was £580 per week. This year – 2021 – same week £1,010.’ 

Another woman based in Wales, who has rented her property to holidaymakers through Sykes and is in the process of leaving, insisted she has no control over the prices.

She wrote: ‘I’m an owner, have just checked my prices and they’ve gone from £459 to £1,145 !! I’ve questioned this and they have said it’s due to demand. Quite frankly I’m embarrassed and have told them to sort themselves out.’  

Mr Handyside said Sykes, which is owned by private equity investors, is looking to make ‘a quick buck’.

He said: ‘If you look at what some of the large agents are charging – for cottages – they are increasing their prices dramatically. I have seen that some are doubling the prices and that is not uncommon.

‘Capacity is down. Lots of people have left the sector because they can’t cope with dealing with the Covid preparations or they have gone bust.

‘When there is less capacity and greater demand, you get price hiking. It was inevitable, but not at these levels.’

Sykes was criticised last year for failing to give customers proper refunds. It required an intervention by the Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) to ensure people got their money back.

Mr Handyside said Mr Johnson’s decision to push back the end of lockdown until after Easter has been a disaster.

Under the Government’s roadmap, people will be able to book a self-catering staycation from April 12 – but no booking that involves more than one household, for example a family plus grandparents, will be allowed until May 17.

‘The sector was very hopeful of being open at Easter, because it is such an important revenue earner. But, now, we are dealing with cancellation after cancellation,’ he said.

His wife Lorna added: ‘All the people that have booked for Easter will now have to be refunded their money.

‘It is going to be devastating. We still have the overheads, we still have our loans and we still have to keep the cottages warm so they don’t get damp.

‘The daffodils are coming out, bulbs are coming out. Normally we have lots of people here, going for walks and enjoying being in the countryside. Now they can’t.’

The Handysides are furious that while restrictions will run on for many weeks, there has been no extension of financial support. A business rates holiday and a VAT cut from 20per cent to 5per cent are due to lapse on March 31.

The hospitality sector will have to wait until the Budget next week to find out if these – along with other measures – will continue.

Sykes Holiday Cottages insisted it would be wrong to accuse the company of changing its prices because of the pandemic. It said prices are set according to availability and demand.

A spokesman said: ‘We have not changed our approach to pricing and our holiday prices are and will always be competitive. 

‘Like lots of other businesses throughout the travel industry, we operate a pricing system that automatically sets prices based on availability and demand.’

It said it was unable to comment on the examples posted on Facebook because of a lack of detail. 

It comes as Britain’s travel industry was given a host in the arm by the Prime Minister’s announcement that staycations could be allowed as early as mid-April.   

The news provided a welcome boost for the sector, with companies seeing an increase in website traffic before Mr Johnson had even finished his address. 

Staycation giant Awaze, the owner of UK self-catering company Cottages.com, said it sold a record 10,000 breaks on Monday – recording one booking every second. 

Pitchup.com, meanwhile, has taken one booking every seven seconds in the past 24 hours.  And Habitat Escapes, which offers luxury holiday in the Cotswolds and Dorset, told MailOnline that sales were up 343 per cent compared with last week by this morning – and a staggering 9,559 per cent up on the same day last year. 

Cool Camping, which runs sites across the UK, saw an instant doubling in website traffic between 3 and 4pm followed by record numbers in the evening. 

A spokesman for the company told MailOnline: ‘By the end of the day, bookings were up by an incredible 1,500 per cent on the same day last year.’

Cornwall was the most booked location, with some of the most popular spots already fully booked for some August weekends.  

Under the blueprint revealed last night, key sectors of the economy will gradually re-open at only four-weekly intervals as the Government plots a cautious easing of restrictions.  

It comes as a SAGE professor warned holidaymakers not to go on foreign trips before 2023. Professor Graham Medley, who sits on SAGE and is the UK’s chief pandemic modeller, said today he wouldn’t book a holiday until 2023. 

The Prime Minister announced that self-catered breaks in holiday lets will be permitted from April 12.

But hotels and B&Bs will have to wait until May 17 at the earliest before they can open their doors.

Staycation giant Awaze recorded one booking every second and sold more than 10,000 UK breaks yesterday, as customers scrambled to secure their post-lockdown getaway.

Following yesterday’s announcement, year-on-year growth compared to the same day last year saw Cornwall up by 671 per cent; Devon up 623 per cent; and the two locations combined up by 643 per cent.

Habitat Escapes, which offers luxury holiday rentals at Lower Mill Estate in the Cotswolds and Silverlake in Dorset, has reported a surge in bookings and enquiries. 

As of this morning, sales were up 343 per cent compared with last week, and 9,559 per cent up on the same day last year. 

Red Paxton, Director of Habitat Escapes, said: ‘The Prime Minister has unlocked the summer we were all waiting for.  We are delighted to see so many consumers booking again and looking forward to their habitat escape in England.’ 

Despite the demand there is still availability to book a post lockdown escape at one of its two locations.

James Warner Smith from Cool Camping told MailOnline: ‘What we witnessed yesterday was a huge surge in bookings following Boris Johnson’s announcement, with an instant doubling in our website traffic between 3 and 4pm when he was making his announcement in the House of Commons and then record numbers in the evening. 

‘By the end of the day, bookings were up by more than 750 per cent on the same date last year (February 22, which was a Saturday) and were up by an incredible 1,500 per cent on the same day last year (the last Monday of the month; Feb 24). 

‘Cornwall was the most booked location, with one or two of the most popular spots, like Mount Pleasant Eco Park, now fully booked for some August weekends, but plenty of availability still remains, though we expect key weekends like the May and August bank holidays to fill up quickly. 

‘The late May bank holiday, in particular, was amongst the most-booked dates last night.’

Mr Johnson said the travel industry will not reopen before Step Two begins on April 12, when people will be able to stay in self-contained accommodation.

No household mixing will be allowed at that stage and only cottages or Airbnb lets that do not have shared facilities will be permitted to open.

Outdoor hospitality will begin at this point, meaning holidaymakers will be able to enjoy beer gardens and restaurants or cafes that have outside seating.

However, those wanting to stay in hotels, B&Bs or hostels will have to wait until at least May 17. At this point, indoor hospitality in pubs, restaurants, bars and cafes will begin again.

The exact timing will depend on four key tests, which include the continued rollout of the vaccine programme and evidence that the jabs are reducing Covid hospitalisation and death rates.  

Awaze owns self-catering brands including cottages.com, Hoseasons and Landal GreenParks UK. 

Group Chief Commercial Officer Simon Altham said: ‘We welcome yesterday’s roadmap from the Government, which gives holidaymakers and property owners in England clarity over taking and enjoying a staycation this year.

‘Last year following similar announcements we saw bookings peak at one every 11 seconds, but this time demand has exceeded our expectations and comfortably broken that record. 

‘It is clear that Brits are desperate to get away, and now have the clarity and confidence to book. 

‘This will be welcome news for many businesses that rely on tourism across England and will allow them to plan their reopening carefully and considerately.

‘We do recognise that some people will be disappointed they can’t get away sooner, but since the start of the pandemic the health and safety of our customers, property owners and local communities has been a top priority and we will continue to work carefully to follow all the Government guidelines in the coming weeks and months.

‘Most of all we look forward to welcoming our customers back and playing our part in helping them experience and enjoy a well-earned break following an incredibly tough year.’ 

Mr Johnson hit back at Tories and scientists suggesting lockdown could ease faster – as Wales and Scotland warned his roadmap might be too quick.

The Prime Minister said he was being ‘sensible and prudent’ with his four-stage plan after attacks on the approach from both sides.

‘Some people will say we’re going to be going too fast, some people will say we’re going too slow,’ he said on a visit to a school in South London.

Mr Johnson refused to guarantee that all restrictions will definitely be lifted by June 21 as scheduled, but insisted he was ‘hopeful’ it can happen.

The intervention came after Health Secretary Matt Hancock slapped down Professor Neil Ferguson for suggesting the government’s blueprint for England could be accelerated if things go well.

Tories and business have been voicing disquiet about the ultra-cautious approach being taken by ministers, even though the vaccination drive has been surging ahead.

Schools will return on March 8, but there will be almost no further loosening of the draconian curbs before Easter. 

There will be a five week gap between each of the four main stages of the plan, with scientists having won the argument in government that time is needed to assess the impact. 

Have you been hit by a staycation rip-off since the roadmap was unveiled? Email Tips@dailymail.com.