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An estimated four million passengers will be travelling overseas this Christmas and New Year period, according to Abta.
The peak travel days predicted to be December 20, 21 and 28 on the weekends either side of Christmas.
Millions of people will be flying via major airports, including Heathrow where 1.7 million people are estimated to be leaving, Gatwick 800,000, Stansted 430,000. In addition around 380,000 will leave from Manchester and 160,000 from Birmingham and 50,000 from Leeds Bradford.
Thousands of passengers will also be leaving the UK from Glasgow and Edinburgh airports as well as large numbers through other regional airports.
Bristol airport expects more than 200,000 passengers to pass through its terminal between tomorrow (Friday) and January 3 with daily passenger numbers forecast to peak on December 21.
Hundreds of thousands of people will also travel across the English Channel by ferry or through the Channel Tunnel with 250,000 heading off on the Eurostar, with Paris, Disneyland Paris and the French Alps being the favourite destinations.
Llandudno, Torquay and Brighton are proving popular for domestic breaks while city breaks in London and York have also sold well, Abta says.
Winter sun lovers are heading to the Canary Islands, Tunisia, Morocco and the Cape Verde islands and for those flying long haul Dubai, Mexico, Cuba and Egypt. Switzerland, France, Austria and Italy the most popular ski destinations.
Paris, Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin and Dublin are the top New Year’s Eve spots alongside Edinburgh and London.
Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer said: “The Christmas and New Year period is one of the busiest times of year for the travel industry with millions heading off to spend time with friends and family or taking advantage of bank holidays for a well-earned winter break.
“This year is no exception with holidaymakers looking for winter sun or a traditional Christmas experience. As always the roads and railways will be very busy so travellers should leave plenty of time to make their connections and check for engineering work before leaving home – as well as ensuring they take out an adequate insurance policy.”