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If the gloom of shorter days and colder nights has left you feeling fed up and already looking ahead to warmer days in 2020, then you might just like to know that, with a bit of forward planning, it is possible to turn 27 days leave into 59 days off work in 2020!

Want to know more? Here’s how to effectively double your leave entitlement for next year…

Get your leave booked early

Nearly doubling your leave entitlement for 2020 sounds mighty attractive. So how does it actually work?

Well, for a lot of people working full time in the UK, their leave entitlement comprises 28 days annual leave plus 8 days bank holidays. So that’s 36 days in total.

If this is the case for you, then act fast on the following advice to make sure you book your leave off well in advance - and before the rest of your team!

Start by focusing on Easter 2020

The first step is to look ahead to Easter. If you can book off work from Saturday 4 April until Sunday 19 April, you will get 16 consecutive days off work (including weekends) which comprise 8 days leave and 2 days bank holiday (Good Friday and Easter Monday).

Book your leave around the May Bank Holidays

The usual May Day bank holiday has been moved in 2020 in order to celebrate Victory In Europe Day (VE Day).

This means that instead of the usual first Monday in May being the bank holiday, it will now fall on Friday 8 May.

So if you book off leave from the 4th May until 10th May, you will get 9 consecutive days off work (from 2nd to 10th May, including weekends) for the price of 4 days annual leave and one bank holiday.

And then if you look to the end of May, the second bank holiday is on Monday 25th May. So again, if you book off the bank holiday and 4 days annual leave from 26th-29th May, you will get another 9 consecutive days off (23rd to 31st May, including weekends).

Take annual leave over the August Bank Holiday

A similar principle applies to the August bank holiday, which falls on 31st August in 2020.

Stretch out your summer and get another 9 consecutive days off work, including weekends, by booking just 4 days annual leave from 1st to 4th September.

Book up Christmas and New Year well in advance

The next – and last time - time to max out your leave in 2020 falls over Christmas 2020, since Christmas Day falls on Friday 25th. And so with Boxing Day over a weekend, the 28th will be given as a bank holiday in lieu.

New Year also falls well in 2020, as it’s also on a Friday.

So if you book ahead for 21st Dec to 24th Dec and then 20th to 31st Dec, for just 7 days annual leave and 3 bank holidays, you can get a whopping 16 consecutive days off to enjoy festive fun with friends and family!

What to do with your leave in 2020?

British Staycationers are expected to take an average of 3 trips in the UK in 2019. And 2020 is likely to be no different.

Research showed that 66% of Brits holidayed in the UK in 2018, which was up 10% on 2017.

So there is a very good chance that these trends will continue, especially as uncertainty around Brexit drags on.

Book a holiday cottage in the UK in 2020

If you are wondering what to do with all your new found consecutive days off work next year then you might want to consider booking a holiday cottage in the UK.

Whether you fancy a short break or a 7 night stay, Holiday Cottage Compare has been set up to let you find your perfect cottage in seconds.

Our simple search functionality lets you browse over 14,000 holiday rentals in the UK by the criteria that matters most to you.

You can then filter your results in seconds to find the ideal cottage. Whether that’s a cosy shepherd’s hut for 2 with a wood burner and coffee machine. Or a large party house in Kent for 16 people, with an outdoor pool and a wine fridge. There’s something for everyone.

Need help finding your next holiday cottage?

You can either browse our easy to use website or simple get in touch via our free concierge service and let us find the perfect holiday cottage for you.

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