A survey conducted on behalf of London City Airport (LCA) has found that the average person in the UK has visited seven countries in their life, the airport said in a release.
The survey by OnePoll, questioned 2,000 people and found that almost one third (31 percent) of Brits have visited 10 or more countries, with one globetrotter claiming an impressive tally of 42.
The findings highlight the cosmopolitan make-up of modern British families, and British travellers penchant for backpacking. Paris is the most visited European capital city, with 52 percent of people having been there, followed by Amsterdam (31 percent), Dublin (27 percent), Rome (20 percent) and Brussels (20 percent). Women are more likely to have visited sunnier climes for their holidays.
The seven most visited countries by Brits are France (66 percent), Spain (58 percent), USA (41 percent), Germany (36 percent), Greece (34 percent), Italy (33 percent) and Belgium (33 percent). 8 percent of people have not visited any European capital cities, including London.
The survey found that those questioned did most of their exploring before the age of 24, with adults under 24 having visited an average of 5.2 countries, growing to 7.5 for 35-44 year olds, and 8.6 for the 55 and over age group.
More than three quarters of the countries in the world have been visited by less than 5 percent of Brits.
Declan Collier, CEO of London City Airport said: ‘Overseas travel is no longer seen as a big deal, it’s become almost as normal as catching a train. This has led to more people feeling comfortable with last minute getaways, leaving packing to the night before an early morning flight, and travelling regularly for business and pleasure.
‘With so many people having relatives living abroad, we have seen a change in the airport’s usual predominantly business passenger profile over the last couple of weeks, as families have been travelling to be together over the Christmas and New Year period. We also see people travelling in search of the snow, and even some taking advantage of the UK’s only year-round Ibiza service to let their hair down over the holidays.’
