01 — Core market measures
Five numbers define the market. Each sits on its own perimeter — do not blend them.
| Measure | Value | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Visits abroad | 99.9M 2025 | ONS Travel Trends (IPS), UK residents; 95.5M by GB residents |
| Spending abroad | £86.2bn 2025 | Same series; £83.9bn by GB residents; vs £77.4bn in 2024 |
| Spend per visit | ≈£863 +5.6% YoY | Derived: 2025 spend ÷ visits; 2024 read was ≈£818 |
| Per-day spend (2024) | £94 Europe · £111 North America | IPS 2024; below inbound visitors' per-day spend in the UK |
| Trip purpose (2024) | 61% holiday · 28% VFR · 9% business | IPS 2024; business leads per-day spend at £154 |
The mirror is the message. Per day, UK residents spend less abroad than overseas visitors spend in the UK (£94–£111 against £160 for inbound holidaymakers, 2024). Britain exports volume and imports value — the structural opposite of Spain and Italy, and the reason a British cancellation hurts a resort's occupancy more than its rate.
02 — Where British residents travel
The most concentrated destination map in the series. The anchors, each on its own published perimeter:
| Destination | Visits | Scope |
|---|---|---|
| Spain | 19.1M #1 | GB residents, 2025 (ONS) — one visit in five |
| France | 9.1M | GB residents, 2025 |
| Italy | 5.7M | GB residents, 2025 |
| Türkiye · USA · Greece · Portugal | 4.1M · 4.1M · 3.8M · 3.7M | 2024 ranking (ONS); Türkiye was 2024's fastest riser (+878k) |
| Europe share | 77% of visits | 2024: 70.6M of 91.4M GB visits; North America 5%, rest of world 18% |
The 2024–25 movers tell the displacement story the series watches: Türkiye up 878,000 visits and Egypt up 521,000 in 2024 while Greece and Portugal cooled — the value corridor east is a British story as much as a German one.
03 — The 2026 pulse
Survey intentions and trade reads, not realized arrivals. ABTA's Holiday Habits panel is 2,001 UK adults; Travel Trends 2026 was published 24 November 2025.
Three structural shifts anchor 2026: the September shift — older travellers lead, but every age band is moving into the shoulder month; rail-ly good — train holidays doubling among 18–24s on Europe's network; and the longest haul — ABTA's named trend of extended long-distance trips, with cruise going long and short at once. The realized 2025 pulse stayed positive to year-end: Q3 visits +5.0%, Q4 +2.5%, with Q4 spending +0.8% — momentum, not acceleration.
04 — Air corridors and gateways
Throughput is an aviation measure — all nationalities, including connecting traffic — not a count of British tourists. It still tells you where the seats are.
Heathrow 84.5M (+0.7%; all-time record; 98% slot capacity) — Europe's busiest airport and the long-haul anchor: EU 33.6% of traffic, North America 24.3%, Middle East 10.4% · Manchester 32.1M (+4%; first year above 32M; third UK gateway) · Gatwick — second, capacity-constrained. New long-haul from the regions: Delhi and Islamabad launched from Manchester.
Heathrow's busiest international routes are the premium map in miniature: New York 3.24M, Dubai 2.86M, Doha 2.01M (2024). Dubai and Doha in the top three say the Gulf is Britain's second long-haul home; Manchester's +4% on a new £1.3bn terminal says the regions are growing faster than the slot-capped capital.
Gateway mix matters for luxury: Heathrow runs at 98% capacity, so premium growth leaks to Manchester and the Gulf carriers' regional feeds — a resort buying British long-haul demand is increasingly buying it via DXB and DOH connections, not direct.
05 — What it means for luxury hospitality
Four operating rules for anyone selling to the British guest:
- Underwrite volume, price the day carefully. One British visit in five goes to Spain; the segment fills beds at moderate daily rates. Occupancy-first strategies fit Britain; ADR-first strategies fit Germany and France.
- Programme the shoulders. The September shift is the single clearest demand signal of 2026 — 24% intent and rising across every age band; keep inventory and staffing for September–October, not just July–August.
- Sell the long haul through the Gulf. Dubai and Doha are top-three Heathrow corridors; the British long-haul cheque increasingly routes through them — Maldives, Mauritius and Southeast Asia capacity via Gulf hubs is the practical pipe.
- Watch the east corridor. Türkiye +878k and Egypt +521k visits in 2024 are displacement measured, not assumed: value-seeking volume is moving within the British book — track it quarterly.
06 — The evidence ladder
Every figure in this dossier, on its own rung. The ladder is part of the product.
| Measure | Source | Interpretation |
|---|---|---|
| 99.9M visits; £86.2bn spend (2025) | ONS Travel Trends 2025, 16 Oct 2026 (IPS) | UK residents; estimates with survey uncertainty |
| Spain 19.1M / France 9.1M / Italy 5.7M (2025) | Same series, GB residents | Most-visited countries, estimated |
| 2024 detail: £77.4bn; purpose; per-day; destination ranking | ONS Travel Trends 2024, 26 Aug 2025, via Commons Library | Full-detail year; GB perimeter |
| ≈£863 spend per visit | Derived: £86.2bn ÷ 99.9M* | Our arithmetic on published estimates |
| September 24%; rail 5%→12%; longest haul | ABTA Holiday Habits / Travel Trends 2026, 24 Nov 2025 | Survey intentions, 2,001 adults |
| LHR 84.5M; MAN 32.1M; route map | Heathrow and Manchester annual releases, Jan 2026 | Airport throughput, all nationalities |
Sources. ONS — Travel trends 2025, 16 Oct 2026 (visits, spend, top destinations, quarterly pulse); ONS Travel trends estimates, 26 Aug 2025 (2024 detail: purpose, per-day spend, destination ranking, movers) via the House of Commons Library tourism briefing, Feb 2026 · ABTA — Travel Trends for 2026 (Holiday Habits survey, 2,001 UK adults, Jul–Aug 2025 fieldwork; published 24 Nov 2025) · Heathrow Airport — 2025 traffic release; Manchester Airport — 2025 record release, 12 Jan 2026; CAA route data. Cells marked * are our arithmetic on published estimates; all other figures are published data on the perimeters stated. Previous issues in the series: Germany · France · Italy · Spain. The big four are complete; the comparative read is live: the long-haul cross-read. Country file with both ledgers: the United Kingdom.