This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-36340487
The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 1 | Version 2 |
---|---|
Big rise in foreign travel by Britons, despite 2015 terror attacks | |
(35 minutes later) | |
The number of trips by UK residents abroad increased by 9.4% last year, the largest rise since 1998, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). | |
In 2015, UK residents took 65.7m foreign holidays or business trips. | |
That was despite a number of high profile terrorist attacks in Europe. | |
They included the deaths of 130 people in Paris in November, and the killing of 38 holiday-makers on a beach in Tunisia in June. | |
The travel industry said the figures showed the "resilience" of UK travellers. | The travel industry said the figures showed the "resilience" of UK travellers. |
"The 9.4% growth recorded in overseas holidays during the year is the largest annual rise in nearly twenty years, and spending on holidays exceeded pre-crisis levels for the first time since the recession," said a spokesperson for the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA). | "The 9.4% growth recorded in overseas holidays during the year is the largest annual rise in nearly twenty years, and spending on holidays exceeded pre-crisis levels for the first time since the recession," said a spokesperson for the Association of British Travel Agents (ABTA). |
Spain was easily the most popular country for UK residents to visit, with 13m trips there during the year. That accounted for nearly a fifth of all foreign travel by Brits. | |
At the same time the number of trips by foreign visitors to the UK rose by 5.1%, to a record high of 36.1m. | |
But while foreigners spent £22.1bn on visits to the UK, Brits spent £39bn abroad. | |
That spending gap of £16.9bn is the highest since 2008, and accounted for a large slice of the UK's overall balance of payments deficit of £96.2bn in 2015. | That spending gap of £16.9bn is the highest since 2008, and accounted for a large slice of the UK's overall balance of payments deficit of £96.2bn in 2015. |
The French were the biggest visitors to the UK, with 4m trips. | The French were the biggest visitors to the UK, with 4m trips. |
Behind them were the Germans and the Americans, with 3m visits each. However American visitors spend more, so are more important to the economy. | Behind them were the Germans and the Americans, with 3m visits each. However American visitors spend more, so are more important to the economy. |
Outside London, the cities with the highest number of visitors were Edinburgh, Manchester and Birmingham, each of which had more than a million foreign visits. | Outside London, the cities with the highest number of visitors were Edinburgh, Manchester and Birmingham, each of which had more than a million foreign visits. |