Travel Brands: Cut Mail Costs by 20% and Hit Peak Booking Season at Full Power

Every January, as Britain crawls out of its festive food coma, something magical happens; the nation starts dreaming of escape. Search engines light up, phones buzz with flight alerts, and holiday wish lists grow faster than airport queues.

For travel marketers, this is the golden window when intent is high, inboxes are flooded, and competition is fierce.

Royal Mail makes that window even more valuable. Their Travel Essentials Incentive offers up to 20% credit on postage for campaigns mailed before 30th January 2026.

That’s not just a discount. It’s a strategic edge arriving right when travellers are actively dreaming, comparing, and booking.

Why January Is the Moment

1. The January booking boom

January consistently drives the biggest surge in holiday sales. Up to 14.5% of annual bookings can happen this month alone fuelled by post-Christmas wanderlust and early-bird deals.

2. “Sunshine Saturday” the peak of peaks

The first Saturday after New Year, dubbed Sunshine Saturday, is the single busiest day of the year for bookings. Households across the UK decide they’ve had enough drizzle and start planning their next escape. If your campaign lands that week, your brand sits squarely in the nation’s daydreams.

3. Direct mail cuts through the noise

While digital channels overflow with ads in January, direct mail lands quietly and stays visible. A beautifully designed travel piece showcasing destinations, early-bird savings, and flexible options sits on the kitchen table all week, gently nudging decisions.

4. The incentive makes it irresistible

With Royal Mail’s scheme, travel brands can earn up to 20% credit back on postage (for 100,000 letters or 50,000 large letters). The only requirement? Campaigns must be incremental showing uplift beyond your usual volume.

How to Make It Work

• Plan early – You’ll need to apply in advance and prove that your campaign is incremental.
• Time it right – Aim to land in homes during early January 2026, ideally just before Sunshine Saturday.
• Target smartly – Use lifestyle and behavioural data to reach the most likely bookers such as frequent travellers, families with kids, and those adventurous “empty nesters.”
• Inspire confidence – Combine value (early booking savings) with reassurance (flexible booking or cancellation options). And don’t forget the magic: destinations that make people dream.

PDV: The Travel Mail Experts

At PDV, we help travel brands reach the right people with data-driven, creative campaigns that deliver measurable results.

By pairing Royal Mail’s 20% incentive with PDV’s specialist travel data and segmentation, your next January mailing can hit peak consumer interest; and do it at a lower effective cost.

2026 could be the year your direct mail works harder, travels further, and costs less.