Londoners (and Roman) shake off New Year blues by escaping to the sun

They say the January booking rush has started a fortnight earlier than usual, fuelled by intense price-cutting and the winter blues.

Bookings are said to be up by as much as 25 per cent on last year following the summer washout and the dreary start to this year.

Thomas Cook's website attracted such heavy traffic last weekend that it crashed and had to be overhauled. A spokeswoman said the number of visitors to the site hit a record but the company expected that to be broken over the next three weekends.

Tour operator Thomson said visits to its website also reached record levels last weekend. Cut-price flights firm Flight Centre said sales for the first week of the year were 25 per cent higher than last year.

Lastminute.com reported a 48 per cent increase in visits to its site and a 38 per cent increase in holiday bookings.

Managing director John Bevan said: "A miserable January, together with the return to work, have prompted many people to start planning their escape to grab some winter sun.

"Long-haul destinations such as Goa and the Gambia are proving particularly popular as people can enjoy Caribbean settings without paying the same price. Egypt, Tunisia, Madeira and the Canaries are also performing well with their year-round sun and short flying times [from the UK]."

A spokeswoman for long-haul operator Kuoni said: "The start of the year has been very busy - despite Kenya being our number four destination. Our top three destinations for 2008 are the market is more crowded and operators are fighting for business."

Many families now see a holiday as an essential rather than a luxury and make other savings to afford one.

A poll of 1,000 Facebook members published in today's Travel Trade Gazette showed a holiday was the second highest financial priority behind paying off debts.

A spokesman for the Association of British Travel Agents said: "We saw 3.5 million people go abroad over Christmas and New Year. No one's saying the industry is recession-proof but if people have to choose between a summer holiday and a new sofa, the sofa has to go."

THE HOTSPOTS FOR BARGAIN HOLIDAYS

WINTER SUN

* Seven nights bed and breakfast in four-star Luna Sharm Hotel, Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. Departures from Gatwick this month, from £199 a head (lastminute.com)
* Seven nights all-inclusive at Hotel Sandra Club, Hammamet, Tunisia. Departures from Gatwick this month, from £229 a head (lastminute.com)
* Seven nights at self-catering Aparthotel Iberostar, Lanzarote, Canaries. Departs .. January from Gatwick, from £284 a head (Thomas Cook)
* Seven nights bed and breakfast at Kombo Beach hotel, The Gambia. Departs Gatwick 25 January, from £429 a head (lastminute.com)
* Seven nights bed and breakfast at five-star Kuruma resort, Maldives. Departs Gatwick from 27 January to 25 February, from £949 a head (Kuoni)

THIS SUMMER

* Seven nights self-catering in Kos, Greece. Departs Gatwick 31 May, from £139 a head (Cooperative Travel Services)
* Seven nights half-board at Hotel Xaloc Playa, Menorca. Departs Stansted 16 May, from £239 per head (Going Places)
* Seven nights half-board at Sofitel Karnak, Luxor, Egypt. Departs Gatwick 12 May, from £478 a head (First Choice)
* Fourteen nights all-inclusive at Casa Marina Reef, Dominican Republic. Departs Gatwick 11 May, from £671 per head (Thomson)
* Seven nights all-inclusive Mediterranean cruise on Thomson Destiny. Departs Stansted 4 July, from £804 a head (Thomson)