British holidaymakers are increasingly opting for cooler destinations as heatwaves affect much of Europe, according to data from travel analysts. Kayak, a travel search engine, reported a sharp increase in flight searches year-on-year for cooler domestic and international locations.
Summer searches for Ottawa, Canada, have risen by 166 per cent compared to 2025 figures. Salzburg in Austria saw a 92 per cent increase, while Aberdeen and Glasgow experienced rises of 25 per cent and 24 per cent respectively. Conversely, Kayak data showed a modest fall in searches for Alicante (-1 per cent), Lisbon (-14 per cent), and Athens (-19 per cent).
Travel insurance provider Staysure also recorded a 24 per cent rise in policy sales for trips to Norway in the first half of 2026, moving it from tenth to seventh place in their destination ranking. Iceland policy sales similarly increased by 18 per cent. A Staysure survey of 2,000 UK travellers indicated that 58 per cent would likely choose a cooler destination for holidays this summer, with 43 per cent stating that extreme heat has already influenced their holiday planning.