AN increasing number of Brits are booking holidays to Spain’s Balearic Islands due to the war in Iran.
Flight disruption across the Middle East and warnings to not travel to parts or the area or the United Arab Emirates have led travellers to seek ‘reassuring’ destinations, according to travel firms who have spoken to the BBC.
Neil Swanson, TUI UK and Ireland’s managing director, has said that people are switching already planned holidays to trips to ‘familiar, easy-to-reach’ destinations like Spain, Portugal and Greece.
Reservations to the Balearing Islands have risen by 40% in the last two weeks according to Thomas Cook. This is the second largest increase in the period with Portugal taking the top spot after seeing a 42% upward shift.
Those still wanting to head out of Europe are picking the Caribbean, Thailand and India’s Goa.
Despite these travel disruptions, 2026 still could break aeroplane records.
READ MORE: Gibraltar-bound British Airways flight from London diverts to Malaga due to ‘smoke in the cabin’
Last year saw the most flights ever according to the UK Civil Aviation Authority’s latest aviation trends report.
The Manchester Airport Group believes that numbers will be up by 10 to 20% compared with last year with Spain’s Alicante being one of the five destinations to see the biggest rise.
As conflict in Iran continues Spain is expected to see an influx of tourists over the Easter period.
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