“Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday” – You’ve probably heard it by now on TikTok, X or Instagram.
I first heard it on Instagram then learnt about its TikTok origins. I was keen to learn more. Now I learnt that it has ventured to LinkedIn. The question I asked myself is “how did a holiday jingle from a budget airline become a full-on social media trend?”

This post is available as a podcast:

This post is about what I discovered and what can be learnt from it’s success?

“Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday” – How It All Started

Jet2 is using the line “Nothing beats a Jet2 holiday” in their ads for a while. I saw it on UK television 100s of times as an advert. Nothing odd or strange about it. Jet2 have it currently pinned on their TikTok account. No surprize there then.

But things shifted when people began using the soundtrack in social media. It started on TikTok. Where else? A lot of trends start there. In fact, I track new trends via a TikTok widget on my mobile device. In this case creators used the song over videos of themselves escaping bad weather, having suitcase issues, or just having lots of fun on a beach somewhere.

Why It Became So Popular

Most people look forward to the holiday experience, and the Jet2’s jingle captured those feeling:

• Relatable: Most of us are very much looking forward to a getaway break from our normal circumstances.
• Repeatable: The jingle fits many holiday situations — packing, arriving at the airport, or even dreaming about going on a forthcoming holiday.
• Feel-good: A nice sounding jingle, easy to sing along to.

The trend expanded to having issues or problems with traveling to or being on holiday. This is where I first encountered it. This catchy bouncy tune is now being used as a backdrop to showing problems, drunken fights on the runway or onboard aircraft. It exploded in a big way!

The average monthly mentions of the hashtags #Jet2Holiday / #Jet2Holidays suddenly zoomed up by 1,700% to over 14,000 mentions in June 2025.

The Effect on Jet2’s Brand?

The viral social media meme gave Jet2 massive financial boosts.

• Revenue climbing to £5.3 billion
• 750,000 new passengers in 2025
• 80 billion views for the “nothing beats a jet2 holiday” campaign
• The airline increased its interim dividend by 2% to 4.5p, signalling confidence in continued momentum.

In the main there is good brand awareness for the Jet2 brand as well:

• Increased visibility, especially among younger audiences on TikTok and Instagram.
• Massive earned media — people promoting the brand without being paid.
• A strong emotional association with happiness, fun, and freedom.

However, with visibility comes risk. Despite memes showing long queues or travel issues using the Jet2 jingle many of the examples are not Jet2 holidays. All the memes keep the brand top of mind — and often in a humorous light, not a damaging one to the Jet2 service offer. The overall sentiment is not negative to the Jet2 brand even when the US administration at the white house joined in on the meme.
The artists featured in the jingle spoke out against this example. Use social listening to judge if going viral is detrimental to the brand reputation. If not, do something with that increased visibility!

The brand is benefitting from this organic trend, but I do not see it capitalising on it. This is a lost opportunity in my opinion. I saw a comment on a Jet2 video in TikTok that someone was shocked to find out that Jet2 actually existed in real life!

Questions are being asked world-wide about what or who Jet2 is. I saw one of those questions in Reddit. One of the conclusions is “the joke and meme is almost trying to highlight some of the stereotypes of British holidaying”. Of course the meme reached far and wide outside the UK, and is being used internationally.

There must be millions of people that have no cluse that there is a real brand called Jet2. I estimate a reach of over 16 million for this meme. Surely an opportunity for a light hearted response video?

Responding to Trending Brand Mentions

I like how Astronomer used Gwyneth Paltrow to make a response video to the CEO/HR crisis that made them famous world-wide and inspired 1000s of viral memes with a huge negative sentiment. Astronomer has gone a long way to turning around and exploiting the negativity with a well thought out response video, then why not Jet2?

Overall, Jet2 wins big time. The campaign turned into an organic movement. And when a brand doesn’t have to force a trend — but becomes one — that’s rare.

Should Brands Jump on Trends Like This?

If you’re a marketer watching from the sidelines, the big question is:
Should we try something like this?

The answer: Yes — but only if it fits.

Key Takeaways:

• Make it simple. Trends catch on when people can join in easily.
• Sound is powerful. A catchy audio clip spreads faster than a slogan on a banner.
• Let go a little. Jet2 didn’t control the trend. They let people make it their own.
• Be ready to respond. If your jingle takes off, interact with the content, remix it, and celebrate the creators.

Jet2’s viral success wasn’t just luck. It was a well-built brand asset that found its moment. Social media gave it wings.