Top Holiday Destinations 2005

Copyright 2005 Hugh Griffin

Spain and France are still the top holiday destinations for
British tourists. However recent statistics show that tourism in
Eastern Europe is rising sharply. In particular the number of
trips to Poland and Bulgaria has increased significantly.
Statistics from the Office of National Statistics showed that
tourist numbers visiting Bulgaria and Poland nearly doubled
while visits to China increased by 43 per cent. Trips to India
were up by 33 per cent and trips to Mexico increased by 21 per
cent. 

Although Spain and France are still the top holiday destinations
for British tourists the number of trips to Spain rose by only 1
per cent while trips to France fell by 3 per cent. Trips to
Portugal also dropped slightly (5 per cent down). A leading
travel agent suggested that the reason for the increase in
popularity of Eastern Europe was price. A hotel in Paris charges
a much higher price per person per night than a hotel in
Budapest or Prague. In addition the cost of eating out and the
cost of alcohol, food and entertainment was likely to be
considerably less in Eastern Europe.

Another factor to consider is the overseas property market. With
spiralling property prices in Western Europe many families
buying a holiday home are increasingly finding that they are
being priced out of the Spanish Costas and the French Riviera.
John Hickson, an independent property expert with
Saharapress.com said that he had seen "a huge increase in
interest in properties in Croatia and Bulgaria in recent years".
The property buyer can simply get more house for their money in
countries with lower property prices. In addition it was felt by
some that Spanish property prices were near their peak while
Eastern European property was expected to increase in value and
would therefore represent a better investment. Inmueble magazine
reports that foreign demand for Spanish property has fallen by 9
per cent. However prices in coastal regions rose by up to 15 per
cent in 2005 and are expected to grow by between 7 and 9 per
cent in 2006.

Lastminute.com have reported that summer breaks in Tunisia are
increasingly popular and saw a significant increase in bookings
for Tunisia this summer. Greece and Italy were the company's top
destinations this summer. ABTA, the Association of British
Travel Agents, said that short-haul destinations accounted for
90 per cent of holidays. Overall ABTA reported that the number
of foreign trips from the UK has increased to 42 million per
year. This compares to about 12 million trips in the 1970s.

The number of British tourists travelling to holiday
destinations abroad is shown below:

1. Spain 13.8 million 2. France 11.6 million 3. USA 4.1 million
5. Italy 2.9 million 6. Greece 2.7 million 7. Germany 2.3
million 8. Turkey 1.1 million 9. Czech Republic 0.7 million 10.
India 0.6 million