Overseas travel from the UK drops for sixth consecutive month
The number of overseas trips by UK residents has suffered a year-on-year fall for the sixth consecutive month.
Figures released by the Office of National Statistics today showed the numbers dropped in both November and December 2017 compared to the same months in 2016.
The number of visits abroad by UK residents in November 2017 was 4.2 million, 4% down on the previous year.
Overseas visits also fell by 1% in December to 3.9 million.
Year-on-year figures for overseas travel from the UK have been down since July.
From October to December there were 3% fewer visits abroad by UK residents compared with the same three months in 2016, and UK residents spent 7% less on these visits.
There was a 10% drop in visits to North America and a 1% decrease in visits to European countries.
Visits to countries outside Europe and North America fell by 7%.
Closer analysis of the figures show the slump is largely down to a drop in business travel.
Business visits fell by 14% and visits to friends and relatives dropped by 3%, while holiday visits rose by 1%.
Meanwhile, the ONS figures also reveal a drop in the number of overseas visitors coming to Britain.
Numbers were down by 4% in November 2017 to 3 million and by a more drastic 11% to 2.6 million in December.
Between October to December there were 8.8 million visits to the UK, 7% less than the year before.
Holiday visits fell by 8% to 3 million while business visits decreased by 9% to 2.2 million.
Spend in the UK by overseas residents also fell 3% on the previous year to £5.3 billion.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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