A guide to Short Breaks in holiday letting

Are you looking for a way to increase bookings for your holiday cottage? Have you considered offering Short Breaks?

Short Break letting offers guests a wider range of flexibility around dates they can travel and also offers the ability for quick ‘mini-breaks’. By offering short breaks, you could potentially generate more income and fill up those small gaps in your calendar.

The Benefits of Short Breaks

Here at Lakelovers one of the main questions we get asked is ‘How can I list my holiday let for midweek and weekend breaks only? read on….

You can maximise your calendar – If you’re looking for a filled calendar, offering short breaks is a good way to fill up those pesky mid week gaps between bookings.

Offer flexibility – Lots of guests don’t have the ability to travel for an extended period of time. A wide portion of the market includes guests looking for mini staycations, by offering short breaks you are able to cater to this market.

Reach more guests – Offering short breaks can open your cottage to a new range of guests. Your target market will expand and your property will be shown to more people who are looking for mini breaks in addition to longer stays. This would give your cottage more visibility and potentially result in more bookings.

Lavender Cottage, Coniston Ref. 1152215

Every month we analyse key data trends including customer behaviours to compare previous months and years. We also cover the best performing locations across the month. Read our latest blog here for more information on why we recommend short breaks.

Short Breaks Types

Peak

During the peak months of the year, including Summer many people opt to go for multiple short breaks opposed to one longer holiday. This allows people to make the most of Summer in the UK by travelling to a variety of places.  Our research shows that during these months, 2 out of 5 people search for short breaks, that’s more than 7.5 million searches annually.

Last Minute

Some of our guests may be looking for last minute getaways. A large factor that affects last minute getaways is the weather. If we are forecaste a (rare) spell of warm sunny weather for a few days, people will want to get away for those days and make the most of the weather.  Due to this, it can be very helpful for guests to provide last minute short break stays at your cottage.

Winter

The Winter months can be ideal for those looking for a short break getaway. It gives guests the chance to have a holiday and explore a new area but due to shorter daylight hours and unpredictable weather, most guests prefer a shorter break in these months. 6 in 10 of all searches for the Winter months of January, February, March, November & December (excluding Christmas, New Year, and school half terms) were for short breaks.

Off Season

Short breaks remain popular for many guests even during the quieter months of April, June, September & October (excluding Easter and half terms). According to our data, over 2 out of every 5 people searched for Short Breaks for these months.

Christmas & New Year

The winter months are known to be popular among those guests who are looking for a Short Break. This includes the months of January, February, March, November & December (excluding Christmas, New Year, and school half terms). 3 out of every 5 people who searched for a holiday during these months, searched for a Short Break.

Flexible Short Breaks

This new option is bookable all year. Flexible short breaks is a daily pricing option that fills gaps in availability and maximises short break booking potential. It allows customers who are looking to start their holiday on their preferred day of the week in addition to your standard changeover days.

Larch Cottage at Esthwaite Water, Hawkshead Ref. 1131715

Moving forward:

Short breaks can be an excellent way to enhance more bookings and also attract new guests, many Lakelovers guests are repeat bookers. Your property will be more visible to a different type of guest who looks for short breaks.  It is a good way to generate more income but there’s a few things to keep in mind.

Costs may rise due to the increase in demand but in the long term, you should notice an improvement in income and be able to recuperate any costs you may experience. To support you, you do have the option to use our Income Maximisation Tool, to help you set the best letting price for your property and our expert Revenue Management team are here to assist and advise you too.

Want more advice? Get in touch with our local team.

You can phone our local team on 015394 88855 for more detail on short breaks or for any further advice on holiday letting. you can email us at: owners@lakelovers.co.uk or alternatively, complete the form below to request contact from our team, including a copy of our FREE Owner Guide.