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Overview
For most UK holiday lets, the calendar between the end of October half-term and Easter is where the year is won or lost. Summer fills itself. Christmas, New Year and February half-term usually fill too. The weeks in between, particularly midweek in November, January and early March, are where empty nights pile up.
Those empty nights cost more than they used to. Since April 2025 the tax rules that once rewarded holiday lets have gone, and the day-count tests that decide whether a property pays business rates or council tax are still very much alive. This guide covers who books in winter, how to price for them, what to change in your listing, and the regulatory dates hosts in England, Wales and Scotland should have in the diary for 2027.
Why winter occupancy matters more in 2026
Two changes have shifted the maths for owners.
The first is the end of the furnished holiday lettings (FHL) regime. From 6 April 2025 for income tax, and 1 April 2025 for corporation tax, holiday lets are taxed like other residential property. Individual owners now get mortgage interest relief only at the basic rate, capital allowances can no longer be claimed on new spending, Business Asset Disposal Relief no longer applies when you sell, and the income no longer counts as relevant earnings for pension contributions (DNS Associates). The old FHL day tests no longer matter for income tax, but nothing replaced the lost reliefs, so every unlet night carries more of the fixed cost.