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It seems obvious to economists that with falling GDP, personal spending also drops. Nonetheless, the United Kingdom is ranked the 5th most well-travelled nation in Europe, and the number of all-year leisure migrants is increasing. It might be the weather that does not allow us to stay too long inside these shores or maybe it is our character. Maybe it means that we travel for the sake of travel or maybe we our able to find different ways to plan our budget. As the world experiences a shift in travel patterns, so too do the British.
Where do we travel? 42% of all travellers favour beach holidays with favourite destinations including Australia or the US. Surprisingly, 35% of the answers to this survey were expressing the desire to visit a place they’d never seen before. Another popular destination were city trips, with places like Paris and Rome currently sitting at the front of the pack in terms of popularity, yet more and more attention is given to less known cities like Marrakech and Hanoi.
How do we travel? The old saying “family comes first” seems to apply when it comes down to choosing our holiday companions. ABTA reports that almost 38% of all trips are spent with immediate family -your kids and close relatives. However, another staggering trend in the category of ‘single trips’ has also emerged — 15% of the travellers surveyed spend their holidays alone. This last trend seems to be growing quickly, at a rate of approximately 2% a year. Additionally, the biggest percentage of travellers consists of people aged between 25-34, followed by seniors.
Why do we travel? One of the main reasons for taking a holiday is to escape the gloomy weather. Sunny Spain was visited by 12 million travellers from the UK. Thanks to great weather conditions in places like San Sebastian (next year’s World Capital of Culture) or on the sandy beaches of Costa Brava, Spain truly becomes a paradise for holidayers wanting to escape the wind and rain. Another reason why we travel is to relax, hence the increasing visits to such places as France or Greece that are rich in spa and wellness facilities. With the majority of holiday travellers going away with their family, another reason to go on holiday is to have a little bit of fun, ensuring that places like Germany and the Netherlands are still in the top 10 of travel destinations owing to their countless number of fun parks. Interestingly enough, safari holidays have also become popular with Botswana being one of the main destinations.
How much do we spend? This year’s spending on holidays in the UK surprised even the most optimistic of predictions. We have spent around £850 more on the total cost of our holiday, while at the same time taking 6 extra days off work. The country that spent the most was Northern Ireland, who, at £1,951 per household, spent almost three times more than the rest of the UK.
