Sunny destinations in Spain are the most popular holiday choice for Brits this year, despite the lure of national events at home, say Holiday Hypermarket.
According to the travel retailer, the combination of short flight times, attractive holiday deals and favourable currency exchange rates makes regions like Catalonia, Madrid and Valencia solid summer favourites.
British holidaymakers were among the top spenders in these regions, which have seen an increase of 11.1% expenditure in the first five months of 2012 . A report from the Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism stated that tourists are spending up to 114 euros per day, which is an increase of nearly 4% from 2011.
In addition, Spain is one of Britain’s most-visited countries, according to the Spanish Institute of Tourism Studies, which reported that there was a significant increase of British travellers to the Mediterranean country between January and May – making makes tourism one of the few industries to experience growth in Spain recently.
Travellers are taking advantage of price reductions on luxury hotels and package deals, despite recent tax increases and spending cuts that are part of austerity measures introduced by the Spanish government.
Calum Macdonald, E-Commerce Manager at Holiday Hypermarket, comments: “Spain is on our list of best destinations because it’s within easy reach of UK airports, served by almost all airlines and travel vendors, and it’s well equipped to accommodate high numbers of holidaymakers.
“Relaxing on the Costa Blanca in summer sunshine is one of life’s simple pleasures, and as a result we’re encouraging people to take advantage of our summer deals.”
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.