Saga has said that holiday enquiries to its contact centres increased by 127 per cent in the week following the publication of the Global Travel Taskforce report.
Enquiries were measured against the same period two weeks before and across the operator’s portfolio of holidays.
Cruise searches focused on Saga’s UK sailings this summer on Spirit of Discovery and Spirit of Adventure, of which all but one are now sold out.
Spirit of Adventure’s inaugural cruise and three of the four British Isles cruises on Spirit of Discovery sold out within two weeks of going on sale on 29 March, the line said.
Saga added that it had “already seen evidence that cruises are a popular option for travellers as bookings were up 20 per cent for 2021/22 and 2022/23 combined” (compared to the same point last year) before the government announcement.
Saga Travel CEO Nick Stace said: “We’d already received a surge in enquiries when the vaccine roll-out started and in the week since the government’s announcement around international travel, we’ve seen another spike from travellers keen to secure holidays.
“The UK and Europe are top destinations for later this year while searches for year-round warmth mean Egypt and Madeira are proving popular for next year.
“Our European river cruises are also experiencing high levels of demand and we’re looking forward to launching our latest ship, Spirit of the Rhine later this year.
“Our customers want something really special and trust Saga to look after them – they know their wellbeing and enjoyment are our top priorities.
“It’s why we require our customers to have received both doses of the vaccine and that’s just one of a number of stringent measures in place to keep our guests safe.”
All passengers will need both doses of a Covid-19 vaccine to travel with Saga.