An East Anglian travel agent has had a flying start to the year after seeing a surge in holiday sales.

Premier Travel, which has offices in Norwich, Swaffham, Dereham and Wymondham, has had a sizzling New Year so far with sales up 20% year-on-year.

The Dereham branch, which employs five staff, has seen a 56% increase in sales in the first week of January, compared to 2017.

The firm has put the growth down to holidaymakers seeking peace of mind in the event of disasters such as the collapse of Monarch Airlines and cancellations by Ryanair.

Premier Travel director Paul Waters said: 'We can put our New Year trading success down to a combination of people wanting security in case something goes wrong, and a continuing trend of booking summer holidays as early as possible to snap up the best prices and take advantage of low deposits. These early signs are really encouraging for us.'