With the ongoing uncertainty of travel, many of us are postponing our holidays and looking forward to 2022 to start planning our getaways and dream locations.
So if you’re trying to plan your 2022 travels and places to go in 2022, you’re going to want to know how to maximise your annual leave to make the most of your holiday.
If you’re based in the UK, use this complete guide to UK bank holidays in 2022 to make the most of annual leave in 2022!
It seems that holidays this year are just not going to happen as we might have expected them to. Back in 2020, a lot was pinned on 2021 being the year of normal. However, with a fresh lockdown at the beginning of the year and currently a traffic light system in place that determines which country you can travel to, (spoiler alert there aren’t many) travel trends have steered towards the UK staycation as the focus for the year ahead.
Of course, there is nothing wrong with that. Supporting our UK economy and helping businesses, especially in the tourist and hospitality sector, is always going to be a positive thing and I often talk about how we neglect to explore our own country so now is the perfect time to!
There is a fresh enthusiasm for caravan holidays, camping, glamping, and cosy cottages in some of the most rural settings. The UK has so much to offer with beautiful beaches and fabulous locations. But many people are still unsure about travelling beyond their local area, understandably.
So it is fair to say that intentions to travel have been shifted for many people to 2022. The great news is that there are some fantastic bank holidays and extended periods where you can make the most of your annual leave allocation while still getting maximum time off. With that in mind, here are some of the best times to get away in 2022.
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Easter 2022
First up let’s talk about Easter.
It is a popular time for many families to head away because the children are off school. It is also a great opportunity to only use four days annual leave and get a whopping 10 days off. This is a perfect window of opportunity to travel and here’s how to do it:
Dates to take holiday in Easter and maximise your annual leave:
Friday 15th April - Good Friday - Bank Holiday
Saturday 16th April - Weekend
Sunday 17th April - Easter Sunday - Weekend
Monday 18th April - East Monday - Bank Holiday
Tuesday 19th April - Annual Leave
Wednesday 20th April - Annual Leave
Thursday 21st April - Annual Leave
Friday 22nd April - Annual Leave
Saturday 23rd April - Weekend
Sunday 24th April - Weekend
A total of 10 days off while using 4 days annual leave
Potential locations you could travel to :
April is a great time of the year to travel to some incredible locations for a fraction of the price thanks to it generally being cooler than the summer months and you’re more likely to get off-peak or shoulder season prices. Whether it is further afield or something not too far away here are some suggestions:
Parga, Greece
Or if you just want to take advantage of the Easter bank holiday weekend for a European city break, how about trying out one of these budget weekend trip ideas?
Riga, Venice, Croatia or Colmar are some of my favourites for a short trip!
Late May Bank Holiday 2022
In 2022, the last bank holiday that we would usually see in May has been moved to signify the Queen’s Jubilee and is now on the 2nd June with an additional day for the Jubilee on 3rd June. This works out great for the half term and for maximising your time off work with a holiday. Plus the weather is usually great across most of Europe at this time but without the bigger summer crowds.
Here you can take 3 days off work and get a whooping 9 days of holiday.
Dates to take holiday for the late May Bank Holiday to maximise your annual leave:
Saturday 28th May - Weekend
Sunday 29th May - Weekend
Monday 30th May - Annual Leave
Tuesday 31st May - Annual Leave
Wednesday 1st June - Annual Leave
Thursday 2nd June - Bank Holiday
Friday 3rd June - Bank Holiday
Saturday 4th June - Weekend
Sunday 5th June - Weekend
A total of 9 days off with only 3 annual leave days used.
You could even use an extra day’s annual leave on Monday 6th June and have a nice 10 day break somewhere.
Potential locations you could travel to:
June is a great time to get away with the kids. The summer is just starting but it isn’t the sweltering temperatures that we might see in July or August and the crowds aren’t as huge yet! There are some great places to go away including:
Greek islands
Canary Islands
Sveti Stefan, Montenegro
The Christmas holidays 2022
Another great stint for holidays is Christmas. But even if you are not going away during the Christmas period you may still want to consider some time off with minimal annual leave. Here are the key dates to note down.
Because Christmas falls on a weekend in 2022, there’s a substitute day off on the 27th, meaning if you wanted to spend Christmas at home but jet off somewhere nice on 26th, you’d get a huge 8 days off with just 3 days of annual leave because New Year’s Day also falls on a weekend, giving us a substitute on Monday 2nd instead!
Dates over Christmas for how to use your annual leave in 2022:
Saturday 24th December - Christmas Eve - Weekend
Sunday 25th December - Christmas Day - Weekend
Monday 26th December - Boxing Day - Bank Holiday
Tuesday 27th December - Bank Holiday because of Christmas
Wednesday 28th December - Annual Leave
Thursday 29th December - Annual Leave
Friday 30th December - Annual Leave
Saturday 31st December - New Year’s Eve - Weekend
Sunday 1st January - New Year’s Day - Weekend
Monday 2nd January - Bank Holiday because of New Year’s Day.
A total of 10 days off while only using 3 annual leave days.
Potential locations you could travel to :
New York City
Christmas is a lovely time to go away and whether you choose to be away for Christmas or fly out somewhere just after, there are plenty of places you can go both for a magical winter escape or a tropical destination for some summer sun.
Long haul Christmas destinations from the UK:
South Africa
New Zealand
Carribbean Islands
Short Haul and winter destinations from the UK:
Lapland
Skiing in the Alps
See one of the many beautiful European Christmas Markets, many of them run to the end of December or into January. Nuremberg, Dusseldorf and Tallinn are my top picks.
Tallinn Christmas Market
Other key dates for the diary
There are other bank holidays and days off worth pointing out and even though you may not get any extended breaks with minimal annual leave they are still really good to utilise when it comes to holidays. For a 7 day break, you only have to use 4 annual leave days.
Other key dates and how to use your annual leave in 2022:
Monday 2nd May - Bank Holiday
Monday 29th August - Bank Holiday
Hopefully, this has made you more aware of some of the key dates that you can take advantage of for your holidays in 2022 to maximise your time off work in 2022, get that much needed holiday break that we all deserve and make the most of your annual leave in 2022.
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