British tourists are favouring island holidays, according to a destination survey by The Advantage Travel Partnership in which the Balearics came out number one.
One in six travel agents who responded to the survey picked Mallorca as their customers’ favourite destination.
After the Balearics, the Greek islands and Canaries were the next two most popular among Advantage members.
Mainland Spain remained “red-hot” according to the survey, of which 71% of respondents reported making bookings there – with Benidorm, Costa Blanca, and Torremolinos, Costa del Sol, both popular.
The survey also found a “dramatic” slump in bookings to Turkey, which has been put down to terrorism and political upheaval. But the consortium predicts an increase in bookings to the region in the lates market.
Those living in the south east of the UK tend to be the biggest spenders with an average 14-day holiday costing £4,053, Advantage also found.
Scots are choosing to travel further than other Brits with Scottish travel agents reporting spikes in bookings to Australia and Florida. West Midlanders are opting for city breaks, with bookings to New York growing more than any other summer holiday destination. The rest of the United Kingdom is sticking closer to home by travelling to countries within a five-hour flight time with holidays to Italy and Croatia also in demand this summer, the survey suggests.
An average holiday for people from the south east is 14-days compared to East Midlands, North East and Northern Ireland holidaymakers taking just 7-days.
Sightseeing and the resort remain the top deciding factors for travellers across the United Kingdom.
Meanwhile, Advantage agents revealed the three ‘quirkiest’ requests from customers in the last year. One asked if the airline can withhold alcohol to her father-in-law, another wanted a holiday to Chernobyl, site of a nuclear disaster in the former Soviet Union. Another customer requested a hotel room that accepts hamsters.
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Spain growth outstrips all other destinations for summer 2017