Great Christmas getaway begins

16 December 2011 09:26

Many Britons are heading abroad for Christmas, according to Abta figures

Many Britons are heading abroad for Christmas, according to Abta figures

Figures have shown that nearly five million Britons are going to be spending Christmas and new year on foreign soil.

Travel organisation Abta said up to 4.25 million people will leave Britain between December 16 and January 3, and many of them will be likely to arrange travel insurance before they depart.

The number is up on last year, when Abta revealed that slightly fewer than four million spent Christmas abroad.

Heathrow Airport will see 1.7 million people leave the country during the period, with a further 750,000 departing from Gatwick.

Further north, Manchester Airport will see off 340,000 Christmas travellers, while in the Midlands 165,000 will leave Birmingham.

But it wasn't just air travel proving a popular getaway method, with many people using Eurostar or ferry lines to travel.

From Thursday to Sunday it is thought that more than 780,000 passengers will pass through Heathrow, with Dubai, Paris and New York among the most popular destinations.

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