Late summer holidays are back on the cards

For those of us who have not managed to get away this summer, there will be a lot of panic buying of holidays after the atrocious weather we have been landed with.

I think at this point we can lose the optimism and simply accept all chances of a roaster are gone. Though I still can’t quite manage to ditch all hope.

New Zealander forecaster and sometime Donegal resident Ken Ring had pretty much written off the summer correctly. He had forecast a dry and sunny April but had predicted a wet end of June, the first and fourth weeks of July and the first and third weeks of August.

Unfortunately he stated that the top two wet months of the year will be August and September – so more misery on the way.

So if are lucky enough to get away in the next few weeks – or are preparing to go when the school holidays are over to grab a bargain – this recent survey may be worthy of a gander.

Apparently Irish people spend an average of eight weeks getting our bodies in shape for the beach – far too late if you’ve booked last-minute.

According to a survey by Life Style Sports, more than half of Irish people rate the Scots as the best looking nationality while on holiday.

Four out of five Irish people spend up to €200 on a holiday wardrobe and 80% of us are blessed with a holiday romance.

While I always thought the old perennial socks and sandles would make the cut for biggest fashion faux pas while on holiday – just a quarter despise that combination – the distinction goes to shorts – short that are just too short for males and females was voted on by 61% of respondents.

When asked what would be a deal breaker for love abroad, the majority (72%) said if the object of their affections didn’t speak English, then love couldn’t blossom. A fifth (18%) said they couldn’t date someone who wore bad clothes and 16% said they wouldn’t pursue a holiday romance as they know it’s only short term. The survey was carried out on 390 people aged over 18 and 70% of respondents were male and 30% female.

For more on what are winners and losers on holiday see this week’s Tribune here