British and European Holiday Homes are already experiencing a buoyant demand for 2006, and there are several very good reasons for this.

The first unquestionably is the Football (Soccer) World Cup that takes place in Germany from June 9th to July 9th. This is the largest worldwide sporting event outside of the Olympic Games and with Germany being so central for so many of the competing teams, supporters in their millions are already planning the month long trip to Germany. And of course they will all need a bed for the night, German police don't take too kindly to drunks sleeping on park benches. It all adds up to an explosive demand for properties in Germany for the coming summer, and that demand is spilling over into neighbouring countries too.

In Britain the Open Golf Championship returns to Hoylake on Merseyside for the first time in nearly forty years. Liverpool and Chester are only 15 miles away. This is a huge event these days attracting massive crowds (the competition runs from July 20th to the 23rd) and this seaside venue is much more accessible than some of the more remoter Scottish courses that often host this festival of golf. Demand for houses in or near Hoylake, and near can mean anything up to 40 miles away, for this particular week has been phenomenal for the past two years. Some residents are planning to move out and after collecting the equivalent of a year's rental, for just the one week, many have booked fine holidays in Florida and Australia. All this paid for with change left over on the back of the potential visit of Tiger Woods and company. Can he win the Grandslam? He will need to win at Hoylake to do so.

Add in to the mix the traditional attractions such as Wimbledon Fortnight, The Cheltenham National Hunt Horseracing festival, and the rejuvenated English Cricket team, and it all points towards the busiest summer for many years. If you are planning a trip to Britain or Europe through the summer of 2006 make sure you book up your accommodation sooner rather than later. Latecomers could be staring at rapidly escalating accommodation rates, if they can find anything at all!

Of course all this optimism could be dented by terrorist outrages, but thankfully most travellers seem to be made of sterner stuff. It is almost as if every incident spurs on many visitors towards an almost Churchillian attitude. "We will not be cowed or put off by cowards!” And may that long be the case. The message seems to be, find a property, secure it by paying the rental in full, and don't accept any cancellation notice unless a generous compensation package is offered. It all looks like being a fun summer. If you are planning a trip, happy travelling!