London, Big Ben.
Travelodge have gathered their findings in a recent survey to reveal that 65% of Britons this year are choosing to stay in the UK for their holidays, which is a significant increase over the past two years. Two years ago only 41% and 35% of Britons took a holiday in the UK. The average trip now costs a Briton £399.28 which is nearly a £35 difference from last year.
Surprisingly, Britons also favour city breaks over the stereotypical seaside holiday with 31% of people opting to take a break in cities like London and Edinburgh. Also, London has stolen the top spot as perfect holiday destination from Cornwall, which has been number one for the past five years.
Travelodge surveyed 3,000 British adults to investigate their summer holiday intentions and it was revealed that 42% of these Staycationers are taking a week’s holiday in the UK this summer, 15% of them are indulging on a two week break on British shores and a third of them are splitting their holidays over three short domestic breaks.
The rise in the Staycation trend is boosting the UK economy as well and Travelodge CEO Grant Hearn says that ‘The Staycation trend accelerating to record levels and boosting our economy by £12 billion this year, is a very welcome sign, and hopefully this is the start of our 2012 Olympics legacy gain. During 2012, our capital city was showcased in its true glory to all corners of the UK and the world, and it’s a great result that London has been crowned as the top Staycation destination for 2013.’
The survey also showed that people in Wolverhampton, Liverpool and Cardiff make up the largest percentage of people that are taking Staycations. The average money spent on a Staycation ranges from as little as £292 to as much as £547, so much cheaper than a holiday in the Canary Islands would cost you! Some other key findings are that 15% of Britons waited for the sun to arrive before booking their Staycation breaks this year and over a fifth of adults have had to wait until May to book due to money constraints. 33% of the adults in the survey said that it was cheaper to go on holiday in the UK and it is a lot better value for money.
The average trip abroad costs around £1,010 and 35% also said it was important to go on holiday in this country to support British tourism and preserve our heritage. 27% of Britons also stated that a holiday is something they refuse to cut out of their lives, even in today’s economy climate. The report also revealed a new holiday trend for intergenerational family, 32% of Brits use the Staycation as a chance for all of their family generations to enjoy time together.