Brits spent £175 billion on holidays this year

02 December 2016 09:35

Spain is the top destination choice for Britons, Italians and the French

Spain is the top destination choice for Britons, Italians and the French

Britons are among the top spenders in Europe when it comes to holidays, new research has found.

UK holidaymakers are the third-highest spenders in Europe, splashing out around £175 billion on breaks, according to a survey by European rail ticket retailer Trainline.

The findings come despite economic uncertainty in the wake of the EU referendum in June.

Brits spent an average of £3370 per head on leisure breaks, while Italians are the highest spenders in Europe, spending a huge £5892 (€6953) per person or £304 billion (€358.9 billion) in total.

Second-place spenders are Germans, forking out £4204 (€4959) per head and £296 billion (€349.5 billion) in total.

Spain is preferred choice

The British people join the majority of Europe in citing Spain as their top destination choice. Almost a third of all age groups say they have visited the country in the past 12 months.

With the exception of Italy, all other European nationalities chose Spain as their number one destination for 2016.

People from the UK are also the least likely in Europe to take a break in their own country with one in 10 Brits not travelling within Britain at all this year.

Holiday priorities

For a significant number of UK leisure travellers, the number one reason for going away is to 'discover somewhere new'.

This was also the case for Italians and the French, while Germans prefer to spend time relaxing on a beach.

Britons are less likely to travel to see nature and scenery, according to the survey, with just 28% giving this as a reason for their trip. This is significantly less than other European countries, with almost half of Germans, Italians and the French giving this as a motive for their trip.

Other popular motivating factors include food, sporting events and attending festivals.

Travellers can have peace of mind while travelling abroad by taking out trusted travel insurance.

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