The number of passengers travelling through Gatwick Airport has increased for the 15th consecutive month.

The figures for March show an increase of 3.9%, or 93,400, and are very encouraging, especially given that overall air traffic movements were down 3.5% year-on-year mainly as a result of reductions in charter operations.

Gatwick also posted positive results for the year between March 2011 and March 2012, with 6.9% passenger growth to 33.8 million, and chief executive Stewart Wingate is delighted with the airport’s progress.

“This has been a successful year for Gatwick, having achieved passenger growth every single month despite the economic headwinds being faced in our industry,” he said.

“We have been competing vigorously with other London airports including Heathrow, Stansted and Luton and we have been winning new routes to the UK’s key trading partners, providing direct connections between London and high growth economies.

“In this last year, Gatwick has attracted new routes to South Korea, Turkey, Vietnam, Hong Kong, China and the Caribbean.”

Gatwick was able to offset the fall in long-haul capacity by charter airlines with an increase in short-haul services by budget carriers and the introduction of new carriers from Asia.

Korean Air will begin flying to Seoul towards the end of April and Air China is starting a service to Beijing in May. Hong Kong Airlines also launched a daily service to Hong Kong in March and low cost Italian airline Air One now flies between Gatwick and Milan twice a day.

May is looking to be a great month for booking cheap last-minute holiday deals, agents and operators have confirmed.

Prices for short-haul breaks in May are dropping in the six week run-up to the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations and booking now should secure the best bargain.

Although you do run the risk of the holiday selling out, it’s been shown that the ‘grab-and-go’ method will probably work out as the cheapest option. And flights are available from most major UK airports, such as Heathrow and Luton.

Mark Atwell, managing director at Dealchecker, said: “In this market, booking at short notice will usually secure the best deal.

“To be exact – you’ll get the cheapest price on a package holiday if you can hold off booking until one month before.”

For example, if you’ve booked a seven-night break to Spain in May around five months ago it would cost on average £300, whereas if you book it now, it’s available for £200.

This actually comes as a surprise with many not expecting the bigger companies to drop their prices.

Maria Whiteman, chief executive at Directline Holidays, said: “I didn’t expect short-haul prices to drop in May because most operators – especially Thomas Cook – dramatically slashed capacity in expectation of a tough year.

“In fact, there are some amazing prices in May, some made possible by bedbanks working with local carriers offering cheap flights.”

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A new flight route is to be launched from London Stansted to Istanbul’s Atatürk Airport, next month.

The new route will launch on May 5, 2012 through Atlasjet, which will be hoping to encourage the already large number of Britons to continue to visit Turkey.

In theory, the new flight route should reduce the demand on the other direct flights which fly from Stansted or other London airports, such as Luton, giving more people a better chance to be able to book flights on the exact dates they want.

Direct flights are already available to passengers travelling to Istanbul’s Sabiha Gokcen Airport from Stansted through Pegasus Airlines. However; Atatürk Airport is much closer to the centre of Istanbul, making the airport transfer and the general continuation of passengers journeys shorter.

Sabiha Gokcen is approximately 28 miles from the heart of Istanbul, whereas Atatürk is merely 11 miles out, meaning it would take less than 30 minutes to drive into the centre of the city if traffic should allow.

Atlasjet airline company have been running for over 10 years and fly to various destinations around the Middle East, including connecting flights from Turkey to Iran.

Over two million UK nationals visited Turkey in 2010 and despite tightening up its visa regulations the country remains popular with British holiday makers.

TUI Travel, the owner of Thomson Holidays, has revealed its summer bookings have improved, fairing considerably better that its main competitor, Thomas Cook.

The company, Europe’s largest tour operator, revealed that overall trading was in line with expectations, with bookings as of March 25 down 6%, compared with a 7% decline published two months earlier. Winter bookings are currently 90% full – an improvement on last year’s performance.

TUI went on to reveal that almost half of its summer programme was booked, while the average selling price was up around 8%. Its performance continues to outperform the market and it continues to make gains on Thomas Cook.

Its improved performance was driven by demand for holidays exclusively available through TUI, but disappointing sales of holidays in North Africa, where the Arab Spring hit tourism hard, has affected the company’s overall performance.

Thomas Cook went on a publicity offensive when it encountered financial difficulties last year, with adverts in national newspapers reassuring customers that it was safe to book holidays despite fears of its collapse.

TUI, which offers holidays departing from a number of airports in the UK, including Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted and Luton, wasted little time in seeking to capitalise on its rival’s misfortune by taking out its own advertisements, which said: “Another holiday company may be experiencing turbulence, but we are in really great shape.”

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The number of bookings made to tourist hotspots in the West have increased and overtaken bookings made to the East, new data reveal.

According to a report by holiday company Hayes & Jarvis, the number of flights from the UK’s major airports, such as Stansted, Luton or Gatwick, to destinations in the West have risen.

The study found that holidaymakers are choosing places such as Mexico and the West Indies over some of the renowned tourist destinations in the East. The firm named St Lucia, Las Vegas and the Dominican Republic as some of the destinations which have risen in popularity among travellers this year.

Figures show that bookings made for the Dominican Republic have risen 800%, while Mexico is up 143%. Cuba and St Lucia have also enjoyed a rise in booking numbers as statistics reveal a rise of 66% and 55% respectively. In comparison, holiday bookings to Kenya have fallen 58%, while Egypt is down 22%, an overall fall on levels last year.

Niel Alobaidi, commercial director at Hayes & Jarvis, said: “We have seen massive year-on-year growth in bookings heading west to the USA, Caribbean or Latin America, clearly highlighting the importance of value in driving customer demand.

“Much of this has come about because of the competitive pricing of luxury all-inclusive packages, which are perceived as a bargain.”

Currently, Mexico is at the top of the leader board in Hayes & Jarvis’s top 10 destinations for 2012, while Khao Lak in Thailand trails behind at tenth.

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Children still hold the balance of power when it comes to planning family time, after some 62% of parents told a survey that they are influenced by youngsters’ interests when it comes to settling upon a holiday destination.

The poll for Dubai Tourism found that while parents said that the exact details of planning a break – such as whether to fly from Stansted or Luton airport – was usually a decision made by the whole of the family, they felt that a destination which would show new things to their children and expand their horizons was desirable.

A total of 37% of those questioned in the research said that not being able to eat together at family-friendly restaurants was one thing that would put them off a hotel.

Being confined to a resort was also deemed an annoyance by 32% of parents, who said that they would not have liked the idea of being stuck in a complex with no chance to experience the local culture. The same percentage admitted that they also would not be keen on having a shortage of activities.

Other poll results showed that creating good memories rather than collecting holiday souvenirs was the most important thing parents wanted to achieve from their break, with just short of three-quarters (73%) saying that spending time together as a family was the most important objective.

Ian Scott, UK and Ireland director of Dubai Tourism and Commerce Marketing, said: “With people having to be more cautious with cash yet also working longer hours than ever, children are at the heart of parents’ decisions when choosing their family holiday destination.”

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The release of a new Bollywood film could be set to create a surge in the number of Indian tourists visiting Ireland.

Tourism bosses are hoping to capitalise on the success of the movie Ek Tha Tiger – Once There Was A Tiger – which was filmed in Dublin last year.

The film is expected to become a blockbuster when it is released in India this summer, and Tourism Ireland hopes its popularity will encourage viewers to visit Ireland.

And with 400,000 people already visiting the UK from India every year, it is likely that at least some of those who book holidays to Ireland will travel across to Britain during their trip, suggesting that major airports such as London Stansted and Luton may also benefit from the latest tourism drive.

As part of the plans, nine travel organisations will head to Mumbai and Delhi for four days in a bid to drum up trade.

Tourism Ireland, which is leading the trade mission, hopes to target India’s growing middle class, which is expanding by around 40 million people every year thanks to the country’s booming economy.

An estimated nine million foreign trips are taken by Indians every year, with around 15,000 of them travelling to Ireland

Ek Tha Tiger stars two of the biggest names in Bollywood, Katrina Kaif and Salman Khan. It focuses on a man’s journey to Dublin, where he falls in love with a woman who is studying dance at Trinity College.

The film was shot in and around Trinity, Merrion Square and the Ha’penny Bridge during September

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More British plan holidays abroad this year in spite of the grim economy, a survey by a discount travel site has revealed.

However, they will still look for ways to save on their travel needs, said the study commissioned by Hotwire. As many as 75% of those surveyed were not put off by the gloomy economic predictions for 2012 and, indeed, said they meant to continue travelling.

Almost a fifth of Britons (18%) spending more on travel this year saved up last year for a holiday in 2012. But the average spending of holidaymakers from the UK will be down 4% from £2,009, to £1,920 per household.

The millions of holidaymakers will fly out from a host of sites including Stansted Airport and Luton Airport.

Travel deals will be searched out by 30% more of holidaying Britons than in the past, while 18% plan their choice on price, not the travel brand. Meanwhile, 14% will travel in the UK rather than overseas.

Hotwire found that 955,092 more Britons plan trips this year – amounting to 75% of the adult population. The corresponding figure for last year was 73% – but the average spend will be slightly less this year.

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The popularity of cruise holidays – which have been thrown sharply into the media spotlight due to the Italian shipping disaster – has trebled in the last 15 years.

Back in 1997, the number of people from the UK embarking on ocean and river holidays was about 522,000, according to the UK’s Passenger Shipping Association (PSA).

However, with an increase in the popularity, more and more people are flying from airports such as Gatwick, Luton or Stansted to join cruises all around the world; the PSA has predicted 1.73 million Britons will enjoy cruise holidays this year.

As well as trebling the 1997 figure, the 2012 tally is expected to be about 1% up on the previous year, which was in itself 6% higher than the total for 2010.

The fact that no UK companies are expected to take delivery of new ships in the coming years has been blamed for the slowing-down of growth in the industry. The Queen Mary 2, Queen Victoria and Queen Elizabeth have all been added by Cunard to its fleet in recent years after it sold the QE2.

Another factor behind the rise of cruise ship holiday popularity is a change in the market for most companies. The average age of passengers is coming down and seems to be moving away from the elderly and rich.

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Holidaymakers could soon have another reason to book flights to Ireland after tourism bosses announced plans for a new scenic road trip route.

The drive will stretch from Donegal’s dizzying Slieve League sea cliffs to the wilds of west Cork, taking in remote Mayo and Achill Island, Connemara and the Burren.

Organisers have not yet settled on a defined route – but it is likely to be made up of existing highways along the Atlantic coast linked together.

The ‘Wild Atlantic Drive’ is expected to attract drivers from across the world, particularly the US and Europe.

Tourism chiefs hope it could become Ireland’s answer to iconic routes such as the Pacific Coast Highway in California or Australia’s Great Ocean Road.

And with flights to the Emerald Isle available from London airports including Stansted and Luton, thrill-seeking motorists from the UK will have plenty of opportunities to experience the coastline that was once believed to be the “end of the world”.

Alex Connolly from tourism group Failte Ireland said the drive could be sold as a two-week holiday.

But shorter trips, taking in only parts of the route, will also be available for those with a busy lifestyle.

Mr Connolly said: “We’ll be pitching this at people who want to come over and have an authentic experience and enjoy not only Irish landscapes, but also the company of Irish people.

“It will be for people who are looking for that rugged, authentic Irish experience, the Ireland that at one stage – before the discovery of America – was considered the end of the world, but still has that remoteness and beauty about it.”

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