How a negative meme helped Jet2holidays add 750,000 passengers – and boost revenue to €6 billion

It began as a joke – a slightly mocking one at that. But the now-ubiquitous Jet2holidays jingle, which has dominated TikTok and Instagram feeds for months, has delivered one of the most surprising marketing wins of the year.

What started as a viral meme poking fun at the UK travel operator has ended up driving significant commercial success. Jet2holidays has confirmed that the meme-fuelled exposure brought in an additional 750,000 passengers, helping push the company to 14 million flyers in just six months. Revenue surged to an impressive €6 billion, underscoring how social media virality – even when not entirely flattering – can translate into real-world business growth.

The meme originates from Jet2’s upbeat “Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday” advert, set to Jess Glynne’s Hold My Hand. While originally released to promote a routine seasonal discount, the audio took on a life of its own. Users began pairing the cheerful voiceover with videos of mishaps, travel fails, and everyday chaos.

From boaters slammed against the rocks while attempting to enter Italy’s Blue Grotto to birthday candles setting hair alight, the internet embraced the irony wholeheartedly.

For example, the following 5-second video alone has over 40 million likes

@bben9450 Appreciating those views😮‍💨 #jet2holidays #fyp #travel #galway #ireland ♬ Jet2 Advert - ✈️A7-BBH | MAN 🇬🇧

Maltese tourists also got in on the trend, showing their hotel room views blocked by high apartments, and being thrown off from a crazy sofa:

@ellsnartt jumping on the trend 😂 #jet2holiday #crazysofa #malta ♬ Jet2 Advert - ✈️A7-BBH | MAN 🇬🇧

And the numbers speak for themselves:

• 80 billion views across platforms
• 11.8 million posts using the audio
• A shift from travel-related clips to virtually any genre, embedding the brand in global meme culture

For Gen Z and millennials – demographics typically indifferent to traditional package-holiday operators – Jet2 suddenly became impossible to ignore.

A brand boosted by irony

Though the meme initially cast Jet2holidays as the punchline, the virality proved far more valuable than the company likely anticipated. The sheer scale of exposure drove new audiences to engage with the brand, ultimately supporting demand during peak holiday months.

The company’s latest figures show how strongly the meme impacted its trajectory: more customers, higher flight volumes, and a surge in awareness far beyond its usual UK-based clientele.

Instead of shying away from the online attention, Jet2holidays cleverly embraced it.

This year, the travel operator:

• Released a refreshed version of the viral audio on TikTok and Instagram
• Launched a competition encouraging users to create videos using the updated sound
• Introduced promotional discount codes tied to the meme
• Extended its multi-channel “Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday” branding

The result was a second wave of engagement, this time blending humour with direct marketing.

A reminder of social media’s unpredictable power

Jet2holidays’ experience is a textbook example of today’s digital reality: brands no longer control how their campaigns are interpreted, but they can control how they respond.

In this case, a sarcastic trend became an unexpected growth engine – pushing Jet2 deeper into younger markets, strengthening brand recall, and ultimately turning a light-hearted internet joke into one of 2025’s most effective marketing moments.

A lesson for any business still questioning social media’s impact: even the silliest meme can deliver serious results.