Oliver’s Travels Launches Campaign to Encourage UK Airports to Improve Facilities for Families

LONDON, 2019-Jun-27 — /Travel PR News/ — With nearly a third of families stating that their holiday ‘officially’ starts at the airport, the luxury villa holidays specialists, Oliver’s Travels, has revealed what families really think about UK airports, as parents with young children voice their concerns about current facilities.

In a bid to improve the travelling experience for families, Oliver’s Travels has launched a campaign and official petition to encourage UK airports to better cater to the needs of families.

Extensive research by the villa rental provider, coupled with a national research project with Censuswide, has revealed that over a third of families feel like airports across the UK don’t do enough to cater for them and their children.

Families with young children, of all other airport travellers including business, solo and couples, feel like they are the group least considered by airports when it comes to facilities, with 9 out of 10 parents voicing their concerns.

Dedicated family lounge

One in 5 people surveyed feel that trying to keep the family entertained is one of the most stressful parts of the airport process. With that said, 95% of parents think that a dedicated family lounge would improve their experience at UK airports, with 91% of them stating that an improved airport experience would make their overall holiday more enjoyable – reinforcing the important role airports play in getting a holiday off to the best start.

Of those surveyed, the call for a dedicated family lounge to be implemented across UK airports was evident, with 3 out of 4 families also stating they’d be willing to pay up to £45 per family for entry.

Some of the key features that families are crying out for with a dedicated family lounge:

  • A soft play area (45%)
  • More family seating available (30%)
  • An area for parents to relax while children play (29%)
  • A film zone playing children’s movies (27%)
  • A napping zone for children and/or adults (16%);
  • A kitchenette to heat up or prepare food; and interactive educational area about airports and aeroplanes.

Best overall experience

Oliver Bell, co-founder and owner of Oliver’s Travels, commented: “The airport is the first stage for our families beginning their holiday experience. We want to ensure that families have the best overall holiday experience and our research clearly shows that airports play an integral role in making that happen, with families nationwide reinforcing that it impacts on the overall enjoyment of their holiday.

“We want to work collectively with the wider travel industry to improve and develop the family travel offering and experience, from families leaving the house to arriving at their chosen villa, and are looking forward to seeing more airports pledge their commitment and consider implementing aspects of this across the UK.”

For more information about Oliver’s Travel’s, please visit oliverstravels.com and to sign the petition visit chng.it/MGbSgYJN2t.