The romance of the open road. The freedom to do your own thing. The chance to give Terminal Five, customs chaos and lost luggage the long goodbye. Should we be surprised that the self drive holiday is on the rise in 2008?

The trend – we might soon be calling it a boom! – has many causes. Firstly we are becoming more environmentally aware. True, we might be constantly told that cars are bad for us but not even the greenest environmentalist could argue that car and ferry adds up to a whole lot less damage than car to airport then cheap flight to wherever.

Secondly, as you may have read or heard, the economy is not as robust as it was this time last year. But, hard working as we are, we still need our holidays. Self drive is the cheaper option. Consider the case of Chelsea and Manchester United fans: a gas guzzling flight to Moscow will be upwards of £1000. Cleaner, greener and cheaper, to drive there will be infinitely more fun. That might be an extreme example but it holds true: the self drive holiday will be a lot cheaper. If you put your mind to it then it can really be as cheap as you like.

For a few years now we (or some of us) have looked down our noses at self drive holidays on the continent. Snootiness is all well and good. But ask yourself where you would rather be: stuck on a budget flight, packed so close together that you immediately become more intimate with the stranger sitting next to you than you’d ever want to be. Or strolling around a cross channel ferry, eating what you want, happy in the knowledge that as quickly as the British coast disappears so new horizons, opportunities and adventures will present themselves on the other side.

Life these days is regimented. We work too long, we don’t relax enough. What fun then, in the package holiday? Do any of us ever again feel the need to sit at a poolside and hear the rep announce that the water polo will begin in five minutes? Thought not, far better the freedom to do your own thing.

With Europe now open as never before the self drive holiday gives you the chance to explore. Plan your route, book your cheap ferry tickets and set off. Adventure holidays are popular – but surely the real adventure is to plan it yourself. The need for sedate adventure can be seen in the rise of camping holidays, camping is the new hotelling, and where better to camp than on the continent. The true taste of freedom!

We Brits may not be fully convinced by the European experiment on a political level. But one thing we can agree on is that the Euro and the relaxation of borders has made Europe a much smaller place. The self drive holiday recognises this in a way that the package tour can’t. Pack up in the morning and be in another country by the afternoon. The gap year you never had distilled into a fortnight’s holiday and shared with the family. Perfect.

No wonder then that the self drive holiday is on the rise. Relaxed or adventurous as you want it to be. Greener than flying. Cheaper than a package tour. A sense of freedom, a sense of romance. Your own pace, your own rules. Nothing beats the self drive holiday. And if you still aren’t convinced then let’s be practical: the price of petrol in mainland Europe will be a welcome break for your wallet.

Guest Article by: Tom Hall

It doesn’t seem very likely does it?

That’s the latest idea to be doing the rounds and Thomson is rumoured to be considering the move. The operator has got a problem, you see. Actually around 750 of them in the form of high street shops. Many are looking a little empty as more people book over the Internet. Open the door at some and you’ll hear it creak and see the bales of straw blowing down the high street.

The company needs to find something to sell in these outlets. It has just started offering holiday homes for sale, which is one of the more sensible ideas I’ve heard. You can’t buy holiday homes elsewhere on the high street, most people would like a chat about such a big purchase and it’s a natural extension for an outlet which still, sometimes, sells holidays.

Thomson had a flurry of interest when it launched the scheme – over 100 enquiries on the first day – but there isn’t enough business to sustain so many shops. Contrary to the hype, only a tiny fraction of people can afford to buy a holiday home abroad.

So the shops need to be selling something else. But suncream and clothes – surely they’re having a laugh. Yes, suncream is a natural extension of a holiday sale, but why would I go to a travel agent for a bottle when I can buy it cheaper in the supermarket (or order it on the Internet) when I do my weekly shop?

Meanwhile, there are dozens of other, better outlets for selling clothes. For a start, there simply isn’t the space in most travel agents to retail trousers and shirts. Agencies would end up looking like charity shops with just a couple of racks of clothes to choose from.

And can you imagine buying Thomson designer jeans? Sounds all a bit naff, doesn’t it?

I reckon it’s back to the drawing board for those clever people in the Thomson marketing department, but I’ve been wrong before. Perhaps you can help them out.

What do you think travel agencies could sell in the future?

Guest Article by Jeremy Skidmore