Despite the pretty dismal weather marking summer 2013 so far, it seems many of are still choosing to holiday at home. VisitEngland’s latest Great Britain Tourism Survey reveals that Brits are showing no signs of bucking the staycation trend with 104 million enjoying overnight trips in England last year; which is on par with 2011. England’s domestic tourism overall spend increased by 9 per cent in 2012, hitting an all-time high of £19.5bn.
VisitEngland pointed out that these results need to be considered within context of last year’s disappointing weather, which was the wettest on record for England. Despite the figures being positive overall, 2012 was still rather mixed around the country, with numerous businesses adversely affected by the poor weather. Urban breaks led the way, with overnight trips to towns and cities on the up, whereas jaunts to the countryside and seaside locations were down slightly. Overall however, spend was up across all destinations.
Testament to our desire to get out and about and explore our country, VisitEngland recorded a considerable rise in the number of domestic day trips in England last year compared to 2011. The Great Britain Day Visitor Survey indicated that Brits took 1.47 billion day trips in England in 2012.
Figures show that the number of UK residents travelling abroad dipped in 2012, with no change in the number of trips taken abroad compared to 2011 – indicating that a large number of Brits are enjoying home turf in their free time as opposed to hitting the skies in search of unknown shores.
VisitEngland’s Chief Executive, James Berresford, said: “These figures clearly show that England is still a much-loved holiday destination for millions of Britons. However, 2012 was a mixed bag for many tourism businesses, and we know that some areas of the country have felt the impact of the poor weather. To boost domestic breaks and inspire even more people to take a holiday at home in 2013, we are working closely with Government on a £4m pan-UK integrated marketing campaign fronted by national icons, Wallace & Gromit. The campaign will kick off on 12 May with a TV advertisement which will see the quintessentially British duo encouraging people to book a break through their local travel agent.”
However, if you are craving some sunshine and fancy ditching another sketchy summer break for some guaranteed fun in the sun, Sharm el Sheikh is a stonking 36°c on average at this time of year, Tenerife is currently a pleasant 21°, while Zante is hotting up nicely at 32°.
VisitEngland is the country’s national tourist board.
