The Staycation trend is bigger than ever this year and as a result, the UK’s top 20 favourite holiday locations will see an economic boost of more than £12 billion between them – as 41 million Britons opt for a great British holiday this year.
These findings have been revealed in a new travel report: Budget hotel chain Travelodge surveyed 3,000 Britons to investigate their holiday plans for 2013 and the key findings follow.
- More than 17 million (17.3m) Britons report that they will visit one of the nine rural locations that appear in the UK’s top 20 Staycation destinations this year. The total spend from these visitors will inject an extra £5.2 billion into these rural economies.
- The most popular rural destination is the Lake District, whose 3.2 million annual holidaymakers will boost the local economy by almost £1bn (£980,000). Other popular rural locations are the Scottish Highlands, which will see a boost of £802m from its 2.6 million visitors, and Dorset – a new entrant into the top ten of the Staycation charts – made popular this year by the hit TV show Broadchurch.
- City locations account for six of the top 20 destinations, with capital cities London and Edinburgh respectively dominating the top places in the 2013 Staycation charts. With more than four million (4.2 million) Britons holidaying in London this year, each visitor will be spending on average £308.20 on accommodation, dining, entertainment and local attractions. This total investment will boost the capital’s economy by £1.3 billion.
- Edinburgh is the nation’s second most popular Staycation destination this year (up from fifth place in 2012), with four million (4.1 million) Britons holidaying in the historic city in 2013 – this will boost the local economy by £1.2 billion.
- Other key city locations for British holidaymakers are the great northern cities which include: York, Newcastle , Manchester and Liverpool – each offering a mixture of history, heritage and beauty combined with a rich variety of fun things to do and places to visit.
- The 2013 Staycation chart shows that the traditional popularity of seaside resorts remains the case today, with Cornwall, Devon and Blackpool each making our top ten favourite Staycation destinations, despite a slight fall in their ranking from last year.
- The bellwether seaside destinations of previous generations are still pulling in holidaymakers, with Cornwall seeing 3.2 million visitors boost the local economy by £972 million, Devon benefitting by £640 million thanks to 2.1 million holidaymakers, and Blackpool ’s 1.8 million visitors boosting the town’s local economy by £550 million.
The top Staycation destinations for 2013:
2013 rank | 2012 rank | Location | Type of holiday | Number of British holidaymakers (2013)
| Economic impact (£) |
1 | 4 | London | City break | 4.27m | 1.3bn |
2 | 5 | Edinburgh | City break | 4.07m | 1.2bn |
3 | 2 | Lake District | Countryside | 3.24m | 980m |
4 | 1 | Cornwall | Seaside holiday | 3.21m | 972m |
5 | 6 | Scottish Highlands | Countryside | 2.64m | 802m |
6 | 14 | Dorset | Countryside | 2.38m | 722m |
7 | 3 | Devon | Seaside holiday | 2.11m | 640m |
8 | 7 | North Wales | Countryside | 1.95m | 591m |
9 | 8 | Blackpool | Seaside holiday | 1.81m | 550m |
10 | 12 | York | City break | 1.81m | 550m |
11 | 11 | Yorkshire Dales | Countryside | 1.78m | 540m |
12 | 15 | South Wales | Countryside | 1.75m | 531m |
13 | 13 | Peak District | Countryside | 1.39m | 421m |
14 | 17 | Isle of Wight | Seaside holiday | 1.35m | 411m |
15 | – | Newcastle | City break | 1.29m | 390m |
16 | – | Somerset | Countryside | 1.12m | 340m |
17 | 18 | Manchester | City break | 1.06m | 321m |
18 | – | Liverpool | City break | 1.02m | 311m |
19 | 16 | Cotswolds | Countryside | 1.02m | 311m |
20 | 19 | Bournemouth | Seaside holiday | 993,000 | 300m |
Intergenerational family holidays
The report also revealed a new holiday trend for intergenerational family holidays this year, as a third (32%) of Britons will use their Staycation break to bring together more than one generation of their family. Holidaying with children and grandparents allows the 20% of Britons who want to holiday for nostalgic reasons to share their childhood experiences with different generations of their family.
The 2013 holiday report also revealed
- In 2013 65% of British adults are choosing to holiday on British shores – a huge increase from last year when 41% of Britons opted to holiday in the UK and from 2011 when just 35% of adults holidayed in Great Britain.
- A third (33%) of respondents stated that it is cheaper to holiday in the UK than abroad plus it is better value for money. The average foreign holiday cost quoted in the report was £1,010.00.
- Over a third of Britons (35%) believe it is important to holiday in the UK in order to preserve our heritage and support British tourism.
- Over a quarter of Britons (27%) stated that a holiday is one of the few things that they refuse to cut back on.
- A third of Britons (33%) research and book their Staycation break online.
