Cash-strapped Brits continue to favour staycations

According to a new survey, more Brits are planning to holiday at home this year than travel abroad.

Of the massive 66% of Brits who plan to take some form of break between now and the end of the year, a whopping 82% don’t intend to set foot outside of the UK to achieve their holiday ambitions.

This is according to the latest Leisure Spend Tracker produced by Greene King which also noted that those aged over 55 years were the most likely group to spend cash on holidays.

Those living in England’s South East or the capital were also identified as prolific holidaymakers and were more likely to plan a trip away than those living elsewhere in the country.

Brits choose to ‘save and splurge’

Greene King’s Marketing Director, Fiona Gunn, explained that the report showed clear “save and splurge” tendencies amongst British consumers.

She explained that while Brits are “increasingly like to treat themselves to a holiday, they are focussing on holidaying here [the UK] rather than rushing to spend time overseas”.

This derives partly from concerns over the stability of personal incomes as Brits remain cautious about overspending.

“While wage growth continues to climb, consumers are remaining cautious about their disposal income, choosing to save it for holidays in the UK rather than going abroad,” Ms Gunn explained.

“It’s encouraging to see that Brits, coming out of the other side of the financial downturn, are willing to treat themselves to a holiday, whether that is a trip overseas or good-old British ‘staycation’,” she concluded.

Top leisure expenditures

As well as noting current trends amongst British holidaymakers, Greene King’s research also identified other key areas of leisure spending.

So-called “big ticket” items such as home improvements, new appliances and home entertainment systems were the cause of spending for 60% of Brits while eating and drinking out and gym memberships also encouraged more Brits to part with their cash.

Spending on the former increased by 4-6% annually while the latter reported a monthly increase of 5% and annual growth of 20%.

If you are planning to spend your leisure money on a holiday this year then you must arrange budget travel insurance before your trip and regardless of whether you holiday at home or abroad 

Date Created: 30/06/2015