For the first time, the majority of British travellers are taking two or more holidays a year, reveals research released today (Monday 5 November) by World Travel Market London.
A survey for WTM London showed that 51% have been on holiday at least twice this year – with a fifth of us taking three or more trips.
Brits took an estimated 106 million holiday trips in 2017, with more than half of holidays (59 million trips) being in the UK and the rest (46.6 million) being overseas trips.*
WTM London asked UK holidaymakers how many holidays they took this year – both in the UK and overseas. This year is the first time the majority of people (51%) have taken more than one holiday – equating to an estimated 54 million trips – in the past decade.
A third (32%) said they have had two holidays in 2018 (representing about 34 million trips), with 12% going on three holidays (13 million trips) and 7% going on four or more holidays (7.5 million trips).
The research showed that the single most popular destination was the UK, reflecting the staycation trends seen in the official figures. For those packing their passports, the most popular overseas resorts were in Spain, France, the US and Italy.
And while we’re away, it seems lounging by the pool or seaside is becoming a minority sport – 49% of respondents said this was what they wanted most from a holiday. Sightseeing was the top activity, cited by 77% of respondents, followed by ‘cultural experiences’ at 60%.
World Travel Market London’s Paul Nelson said: “Perhaps it’s a reflection of the heatwave that we enjoyed during summer 2018, but it’s interesting to see that the staycation is still strong.
“And despite some concerns about the economy, it seems that Brits are determined to pack up their troubles and head for a holiday, whether it be domestic or overseas – with more of us now able to afford two or more holidays.
“Anecdotally, we’re hearing that more people are booking city breaks during Easter or Christmas in addition to their main summer-sun holiday, and travellers are getting clever about how they use their annual leave around bank holidays to maximise their time away. It seems that the traditional peak season fortnight holiday is on the wane.
“Abta estimated that about 2.2 million Brits went overseas for the August bank holiday this year, and 2.1 million over Easter.
“And some parents are even content to pay a fine and take their kids out of school during term time as they know it will still be cheaper to take a break outside of the peak season.
“At the other end of the demographic spectrum, the empty-nesters and silver surfers are free to take as many holidays a year as they can afford, and whenever they like – and they represent a lucrative market for the travel trade.”
*Sources: ONS and VisitBritain
https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/leisureandtourism/articles/traveltrends/2017
Click to access 40413193-260c_gb_tourist_2017_annual_report_v16.pdf
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About World Travel Market
World Travel Market (WTM) portfolio comprises six leading B2B events across four continents, generating more than $7bn of industry deals. The events are:
WTM London, the leading global event for the travel industry, is the must-attend three-day exhibition for the worldwide travel and tourism industry. About 50,000 senior travel industry professionals, government ministers and international media visit ExCeL London every November, generating about £2.8 billion of travel industry contracts. http://london.wtm.com/. Next event: 5-7 November 2018 – London.
T>F Travel Forward is a new travel technology event co-located with WTM London 2018 and part of the WTM portfolio of events. The inaugural T>F Travel Forward conference, exhibition and buyer programme will take place on 5 – 7 November 2018 at ExCeL London, showcasing next-generation technology for travel and hospitality.
WTM Latin America, now in its fifth edition, attracts about 9,000 unique senior executives. The event generates about US$374 million of new business. Taking place in Sao Paulo, Brazil, this show attracts a global audience to meet and shape the direction of the travel industry. More than 7,000 unique visitors attend the event to network, negotiate and discover the latest industry news. http://latinamerica.wtm.com/. Next event: 3-5 April 2018 – Sao Paulo.
WTM Africa launched in 2014 in Cape Town, South Africa. Nearly 5,000 travel industry professionals attend Africa’s leading inbound and outbound travel and tourism market. WTM Africa delivers a proven mix of hosted buyers, media, pre-scheduled appointments, on-site networking, evening functions and invited travel trade visitors. http://africa.wtm.com/. Next event: 18-20 April 2018 – Cape Town.
Arabian Travel Market (ATM) is the leading, international travel and tourism event in the Middle East for inbound and outbound tourism professionals. ATM 2017 attracted almost 40,000 industry professionals, agreeing deals worth US$2.5 billion over the four days. The 25th edition of ATM will showcase more than 2,500 exhibiting companies across 12 halls at Dubai World Trade Centre, making it the largest ATM in its 25-year history. http://arabiantravelmarket.wtm.com/ www.wtmworld.com. Next event: 22-25 April 2018 – Dubai.
International Golf Travel Market (IGTM) is the meeting place for the global B2B golf travel community. Taking place annually since 1998, IGTM brings together more than 500 golf tourism suppliers and 400 pre-qualified buyers for four days of unmissable pre-scheduled appointments and exclusive networking opportunities. Showcasing a different golf destination every year, IGTM brings together 1,400 golf tourism professionals from more than 65 countries. http://igtm.wtm.com/. Next event: 15-18 October 2018 – Slovenia.
About Reed Exhibitions
Reed Exhibitions is the world’s leading events business, enhancing the power of face-to-face through data and digital tools at more than 500 events a year, in more than 43 countries, attracting more than seven million participants. East, Asia Pacific and Africa and organised by 41 fully staffed offices. Reed Exhibitions serves 43 industry sectors with trade and consumer events. It is part of the RELX Group plc, a world-leading provider of information solutions for professional customers across industries.
About Reed Travel Exhibitions
Reed Travel Exhibitions is the world’s leading travel and tourism events organiser with a growing portfolio of more than 22 international travel and tourism trade events in Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Our events are market leaders in their sectors, whether they are global and regional leisure travel trade events, or specialist events for meetings, incentives, conference, events (MICE) industry, business travel, luxury travel, travel technology as well as golf, spa and ski travel. We have more than 35 years’ experience in organising world-leading travel exhibitions.
More information, please contact:
Paul Nelson – WTM Portfolio PR Manager
T: +44 (0)20 8910 7032/ M: +44 (0)79 1955 5510
Natalia Hartmann – WTM Portfolio PR Executive
E: natalia.hartmann@reedexpo.co.uk
T: +44 (0)20 8439 5535/ M: +44 (0)74 0336 7331