New Zealand tops UK's Travel wishlist

Hiking the Milford Track: New Zealand's natural features are at the top of the UK's holiday wish list. Photo / Ariel Maor, Getty Images

New Zealand might be "at the bottom of the word" but in the eyes of UK travellers our country is top of their travel list.

After a survey by groups tour operator On The Go Tours, it has been revealed that one in four Brits have New Zealand as their dream location. In spite of this only a little over 13% have ever visited the Antipodes.

For the inhabitants of British cities most likely to choose New Zealand as a top destination, Edinburgh leads with 35% and Bristol on 33%.

Perhaps this is in part due to the Scottish capital's kinship with Dunedin - the "Edinburgh of the South" which CNN declared the to be New Zealand's most underrated city.

However, Aotearoa is not every Pom's cup of tea.

While, 33% of men surveyed were in favour of a New Zealand holiday, compared to 22% of women.

And though New Zealand has appeal to both backpackers and those with a few more miles under their belts, those seriously contemplating the trip seem to be mostly from an older demographic

It's particularly popular with travellers over 55+ who have both time and finances at their disposal to consider a trip seriously.

Only 17% of UK travellers aged under 34 had New Zealand at the top of their list compared to almost 40% of over 55s.

The Telegraph, a leading UK broadsheet, has been aware of this travel trend for quite some time.

"The 'Land of the Long White Cloud' has long been popular among Telegraph readers. In fact, for the past three years it has been voted readers favourite long-haul destination in the annual Telegraph Travel Awards," says the Telegraph's Travel.

The OTGT survey, which took into account feedback from over 2000 out-doorsey types, asked respondentds about their top destinations they would like to visit and how "adventurous" they considered themselves.

New Zealand tops UK's Travel wishlist

•Only 15% of males and 12% of females surveyed have visited Australasia
•New Zealand is the UK's top destination - with 27% of Brits choosing it as their dream holiday location
•33% of males compared to 22% of females voted for NZ as their ideal holiday location
•38% of 55+ year olds put Aotearoa on top compared to 32% of 45-54 year olds.
•33% of the South West and East regions of England voted for NZ as their dream holiday destination
•Edinburgh, Scotland was the UK city with most residents (35%) voting for NZ as their ideal holiday destination, followed by 33% of Bristol, England residents
Source: On The Go Tours