February saw a rise in the number of holidaymakers booking a trip to the Isle of Wight for 2024, a holiday lettings agency has said.

Latest data from holidaycottages.co.uk shows there was a 54 per cent increase in bookings compared with February last year.

The uplift coincides with the airing of Channel 5’s four-part series, Isle of Wight: Jewel of the South.

The week after the first episode aired, holidaycottages.co.uk reports that it saw a 50 per cent increase and has continued to see at least a 39 per cent year on year increase each week since then.

Read more: Isle of Wight cafe and attraction feature in final Jewel of the South

Here's how to watch the latest series of Isle of Wight: Jewel of the South

The full series is available to watch on demand, HERE.

Analysis of Google Trends data over the last 30 days has also shown a huge spike on February 8 – which is when the second episode aired.

The four-part documentary, which is narrated by Alan Titchmarsh, returned for a second series on February 1.

Talking about rise in bookings, Hannah Cooper, regional head of sales from holidaycottages.co.uk commented: “While the spike in bookings can’t solely be attributed to the Channel 5 show, it has certainly played a big part in shining the spotlight on England’s biggest Island which is easy to reach by ferry.

"The Isle of Wight is a fantastic place to visit, no matter the time of year and that’s reflected in the bookings currently being made. We’ve seen an even split of 40 per cent of bookings taking place in spring (March/April/May) and 40 per cent taking place in summer (June/July/August), March and June are proving particularly popular with 15 and 16 per cent of the share.

"This is no doubt where people are looking to take advantage of the Island just before the schools break up for summer.”

Hannah added: “Boasting beautiful countryside and 800 kilometres of coastal footpaths, there’s so much to see and do on the Isle of Wight. 

"As a result, the Island has always proven popular with holidaymakers so it’s great to see so many of our lovely holiday homes enjoying forward bookings for 2024. "