7% fewer Brits travelled abroad last year than before Covid, but still spent 16% more than in 2019

May 30, 2024 - PRLog -- Surprising new travel trend figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal that, while Brits made 86.2 million visits abroad last year (significantly up on 2022's 71 million), that was still a huge 7% down on 2019's pre-Covid peak of 93.1 million visits.

Despite the fact fewer of us travelled overseas last year than before the pandemic, we still managed to spend a record £72.4bn – that's 16% more than 2019's £62.3bn.

It's small wonder that a leading travel expert says that, while airport disruption could partly explain why Brits made 7% fewer foreign trips than in 2019, rising costs can't be ignored.

Lily Smith, a travel expert from the specialist accommodation finder UniversityRooms.com says: 'It's still the case that fewer of us are holidaying overseas than we did pre-Covid. Despite this, Brits spent significantly more on overseas trips last year than ever before. Drilling into these new figures, we can see holidays were the most popular reason for travelling abroad in 2023. Brits made 55.5 million holiday trips last year. That's a lot, but still 5% fewer than in 2019.

'Last year, Brits spent £50bn on overseas holidays alone.  Last year, over two-thirds of all UK residents' visits to Europe were for holidays. Spain was our favourite destination in 2023, accounting for 21% of all trips abroad. In total, Brits made 17.8 million visits there last year. Our second most popular destination was France, with 9.2 million visits in 2023, making up 11% of total trips abroad. Italy came third with 6% of total visits.

'With overseas spending soaring by 16%, holidaying abroad appears to be an increasingly pricey option. That's why an increasing number of canny holidaymakers are planning to stay in vacant university rooms for their next overseas holiday. That's a clever call, as many universities on the Continent (as well as in the UK) offer rooms that are great value, centrally located and are still readily available to book for the peak summer season. Best of all, you can stay in them even if you are not a student.

'For example, accommodation is still available in August in Residencia Universitaria Burjassot, Valencia, for just £47.71 a night for a single ensuite and £62.45 for a double.

'Using the innovative service UniversityRooms.com, visitors can choose from single, twin or double ensuite rooms, on a bed & breakfast or self-catering basis. For more information on how to keep down holiday costs in Spain, for example, by booking a university stay, see: https://www.universityrooms.com/en-GB/countries/ES