Appetite for overseas travel declines steeply
THE number of trips made abroad by UK residents last year fell at the fastest rate since the 1970s, official figures have revealed.
UK residents made 58.6 million visits overseas in 2009 – 15 per cent fewer than in 2008, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
Visits to the UK by overseas residents also fell in 2009, but more slowly.
The ONS said it was business visits that were hit hardest in 2009. They fell by 23 per cent among UK residents going abroad and by 19 per cent among overseas residents coming to the UK.