VisitEngland: domestic overnight holiday trips up by 9% in both Great Britain and England during July 2013, YoY

London, UK, 2013-11-4 — /travelprnews.com/ — Today at World Travel Market in London,  VisitEngland, the national tourist board, announced that according to the Great Britain Tourism Survey the number of domestic overnight holiday trips was up by 9 per cent in Great Britain and 9 per cent in England during July this year compared to the same time last year, with visitors spending £1.8billion over the month.

Not surprisingly the good weather during the summer helped to boost tourism in this country, according to VisitEngland’s latest Staycation research.  12 per cent of people said they had changed their holiday plans as a result of the weather to spend more of their holidays in the UK.   18-34 year olds (23 per cent) and families (19 per cent) were more likely to have changed their plans because of the weather and over half of all holidaymakers (56 per cent) in England enjoyed good weather this year.  17 per cent said they were more likely to take a holiday in England next year because of the weather in 2013.

James Berresford, VisitEngland’s Chief Executive said: “Clearly the 588 hours of sunshine * this year has been a boost for domestic tourism.  Operators have reported increased visitor numbers this year and are seeing positive forward bookings for Autumn.  With the 450th anniversary of the birth of Shakespeare, the Tour de France setting off from Yorkshire, as well as a whole host of exciting events, new attractions and hotel openings, I’m confident that the trend to holiday at home will go from strength to strength.”

The  Staycation research which asks over a thousand Britons about their attitudes towards taking a break at home shows that levels of optimism about the economy are the highest since the downturn began.  The number of people who believe we are over the worst of the economic downturn jumped from 13 per cent in February to 29 per cent by September.

-Ends-

For more information contact:
Sarah Long, Head of Corporate Communications Tel: 020 7578 1452, Email sarah.long@visitengland.org
www.visitengland.org

Notes to Editors:

About GBTS
• GBTS has replaced the UKTS survey, and is jointly sponsored by VisitEngland, VisitScotland and  VisitWales, and carried out by independent research agency TNS-RI – a background to the survey can be found here: http://www.visitengland.org/insight-statistics/major-tourism-surveys/overnightvisitors/index.aspx
• July’s results can be found here: http://www.visitengland.org/Images/July%202013%20-%20Commentary%20of%20results_tcm30-39180.pdf

About the Staycation research
• VisitEngland commissions The Staycation research twice a year via 1000 + quantitative online interviews.  This latest wave of research was conducted between 16-23 September 2013.
• For the full report, visit:
http://www.visitengland.org/Images/Wave%2021%20DIP%20Report_FINAL__tcm30-39132.pdf

• *According to the Met Office there were 588 hours of sunshine making 2013 the 7th sunniest summer since 1929.  It was also the driest summer since 2006.

About VisitEngland
• VisitEngland is the country’s national tourist board. We work in partnership with the industry to develop the visitor experience across England, plan national tourism strategy, grow the value of tourism in England and provide advocacy for the industry and our visitors
• Our work is underpinned by robust research and customer insights. You can access the latest in-depth market intelligence and statistics on www.visitengland.org/insight-statistics

About England
• England is a unique destination and a real powerhouse in global tourism. It represents 84 per cent of the total UK visitor economy, is worth £97 billion, and supports in excess of 2 million jobs
• More information can be found on www.visitengland.com  and www.visitengland.org

 

Subscribe to Notifications