Study reveals Brits eager to travel despite cost of living crisis

Most Brits said they would rather cut costs related to eating out and shopping instead of axing travel plans. Photo / 123rf

The rising cost of living has tightened pursestrings around the world but in the UK, Brits aren't willing to let it stop their travel plans.

Rising inflation and labour shortages are no match for the desire to travel in the UK according to a recent study by ABTA, a trade association that represents national tour operators and travel agents.

More than 60 per cent of Brits planned to travel abroad in 2023, and see it as a spending priority, according to the Holiday Habits report.

People said they would cut down on eating out, non-essential shopping and clothing before touching their holiday budget, said ABTA chief executive Mark Tanzer.

"Indications from our research show that people plan to prioritise spending on holidays over other nonessentials," he said. Only 23 per cent of people said they'd reduce travel in the next year.

This is ABTA's ninth report after a two-year hiatus during the peak pandemic years. The 2022 report analysed how people travelled between September 2021 and August 2022 and what they had planned.

Of the 2000 respondents, 45 per cent had travelled overseas for a holiday in the last 12 months. The most popular destinations were Spain (31 per cent), France (20 per cent), the US and Italy (12 per cent). New Zealand also made the top 10 list, in 9th place at 5 per cent.

Of the types of trips, beach holidays and city breaks were most popular, while people were least likely to have taken a home swap or train holiday.

Prioritising travel isn't just a British phenomenon either.

Recent research from World Travel Market (WTM) found that 64 per cent of people had already booked or planned a holiday for 2023, euronews reported. Of those surveyed, only 16 per cent claimed they were scrapping plans to travel.