The holiday and tourism business has been affected more than virtually any other industry by both the downturn in the global economy and by ecological pressures. A substantial number of travellers from Europe, and particularly the UK, would book one ‘long-haul’ vacation as their main annual holiday and would add one or two short breaks to closer resorts. However, it is now far more common for people to stick to one continental holiday, usually much closer, and possibly add a weekend or two in their country of origin. Indeed, many are now choosing to take time off work and simply stay at home!
The reasoning is, of course, perfectly simple. The rising costs of aviation fuel, combined with the ecological impact of flying, have resulted in a disproportionate rise in the actual price of travelling anywhere, especially long distances. Resorts and hotels around the world have struggled to compete for the remaining UK market, often by dramatically reducing the prices of accommodation, but this has had little effect. Whilst prices for flights around Europe have remained reasonably stable, and comparatively low, the cost of flying further afield has increased dramatically. In this day and age, people also take seriously talk about our carbon footprints and those on the dinner party circuit no longer want to boast of holidaying in ever more remote locations, for fear of being thought of as damaging the environment.
What effect this will have in the long term is debatable, but certainly the people to benefit the most from this trend are holiday companies and accommodation suppliers in destinations that are far enough away to feel ‘different’, but close enough to home not to involve lengthy and expensive flights. For travellers from the UK, the rest of Europe, and particularly the southern Mediterranean region, have seen the most obvious effects of this trend.
Currently, Northern Cyprus, looks like being one of the ‘in’ places for Mediterranean holidays. Far enough from northern Europe, yet close enough not to involve extremely costly travel arrangements, Cyprus is one of the areas that seems to be suffering less than most in terms of tourism numbers. Certainly, holidays to Northern Cyprus have seen lower than normal bookings, but generally not in line with the decreases to other parts of the world.
And anyway, North Cyprus holidays remain an excellent idea, no matter what your particular requirements! The relative political isolation of the island over the years means that development has run at a slower pace than many other areas and although it would be impossible to say the place has not changed over time, it certainly has not changed to the extent of being unrecognisable. Although usually well maintained and regularly updated, many of the hotels in Northern Cyprus have retained the appearance and ‘feel’ that has made them popular in the past.
Here, the emphasis tends to be on an old-fashioned level of personal service, rather than offering every conceivable facility. The range of hotels in north Cyprus also includes a handful of recent additions. A few of these have been built with an eye to the traveller who really does want everything, and one or two have just about every facility imaginable. And of course, the island’s climate is one of the best in the Mediterranean. Even in the searing temperatures of high summer, there is always a cool breeze to be found somewhere. Ancient hillside villages and unspoiled beaches vie for the attention of the visitor and anyone interested in history or archaeology will find plenty to be amazed by. English is pretty widely spoken and, although it went through a fragile period a few years ago, the economy is now quite stable and exchange rates make sense! There are many ways to book north Cyprus holidays, but a careful search of the internet will reveal a good number of hotel sites and portals, together with plentiful information about the region and the country.
So, why book a holiday in Northern Cyprus? Well, the reasons are almost endless, but the best way to find out is to go there and see for yourself!
