United Kingdom, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire. November 23, 2023

Holiday sales are not just a time for consumers to get excited; it's one of the busiest sales periods for hoteliers. New research from Gifted - the UK's leading gift voucher platform by Journey Hospitality - found that 43% of total revenue from hotel gift voucher sales is generated in November and December.

Starting with Black Friday - which has the highest average spend per hotel voucher at £152 and generated over £2 million in sales in 2022, an increase of 741% on regular business days - and running through Christmas, hotels face a busy end to the year as they juggle gift voucher fulfilment with operational demands of the festive season.

Gifted's research also found:

• Women buy the most hotel gift vouchers in every month - apart from December

• Men buy 3 in every 5 hotel gift vouchers sold on Christmas Eve

• A quarter of all hotel gift vouchers are bought by 25 to 34 year olds

• Over 65s are the least likely to buy gift vouchers - just 10% of all sales

• £25,560 - the highest price gift voucher for a UK hotel in 2022

• 66% of vouchers purchased in 2023 are delivered via email. Post is preferred by 20% of shoppers, particularly when purchasing from a high-end luxury hotel

• London shoppers buy nearly 3 in 5 vouchers (59%), with Birmingham (3%), Plymouth (2.9%), Norwich and Milton Keynes (2.7% each) rounding out the top five locations of purchasers

Simon Bullingham, CEO of Journey Hospitality said: "The gift card industry is worth £7 billion each year, and hoteliers have become more savvy at staking their claim to that pot. Afternoon tea, spa treatments and hotel stays are the staples, but consumers are also searching for more quirky experiences. Murder mystery events, cookery schools and wild water swimming experiences are just some of the hotel vouchers sold in the last year."

Studying trends across more than 350 luxury UK hotels and resorts, Gifted's report provides insight into consumer behaviour when purchasing gift vouchers, and outlines opportunities for hoteliers to grow their market share. For the full set of insights, the ‘Giving hotels success: the ultimate guide to gift vouchers' report is available to download at gifted.travel/white-paper/

Bullingham said: "To maximise business opportunities, hotels need to provide gift vouchers that are easily shoppable to customers. In today's digital age, selling vouchers online is a surefire way to boost revenue and give your customers what they want - memorable experiences and a deeper brand connection."

Discover more about Gifted or download the full report at gifted.travel