Users of leading cheap flight site Skyscanner have voted warm and sunny weather as the most important factor when choosing their holiday location, outranking the desire for a low cost destination in the poll.

Despite Britain’s faltering economy, it seems that escaping the UK’s gloomy weather is the most important goal of British holidaymakers, and they are quite happy to pay for the privilege of sunny skies.

Over 300 people took part in the Skyscanner poll, 20% of whom said that ‘warm and sunny weather’ was the most essential factor in their holiday decision process.

A ‘good value/low cost location’ was a close second with 17% of the vote, and ‘interesting/exotic culture’ was considered the third most important criteria with 13% of the vote.

‘Good food’ was the fourth most vital factor with 11% of the vote, followed by ‘famous sights’ (9%), ‘lively nightlife’ (7%), ‘short flights and travel times’ (6%) and lastly ‘family friendly’ with only 5%.

Every summer Britain experiences a mass exodus when thousands of UK holidaymakers head for the warmer climes of Spain, Portugal, Turkey, Greece and many other Mediterranean sun spots each year.

Barry Smith, Skyscanner co-founder and director commented: “Our poll shows that Britons’ love of sun is still the most important driving force behind holiday location choice. Although the recession is influencing travel choices, escaping Britain’s gloomy climate is the most essential goal. Sunny countries that are non-euro such as Turkey and Croatia are likely to be especially popular this summer as they combine value and sun.”