Thousands of families will be abandoning their European holiday this summer, as the ailing pound continues to fall against the euro.
The two week summer holiday to Europe is as popular with Brits as fish and chips, but millions of tourists will be put of this year as value for money on these holidays shrinks.
More expensive than a year ago, cash strapped Brits are struggling to afford their usually yearly holiday, over the past four years the pound has fallen more than 20 per cent against the euro.
Popular destinations such as France, Italy and Spain will see a large decrease in tourists as the weak pound pushes up the cost to European destinations.
Figures reported by the Post Office have shown that a typical family holiday to Italy has gone up by some 80 per cent in just four years.
In 2007 Brit’s were able to get approximately 1.3-1.4 euro’s to the pound, but today the figure is hovering just above one euro.
The extra holiday expenses come as well as furl surcharges, the increasing price of package holidays and budget airline tickets.
ING Direct’s Richard Doe said: ‘It’s clear that a tough economic climate is causing consumers to pull-off a very difficult balancing act – cutting down on debt while dealing with rising prices – so it’s not surprising that the summer holiday is often being sacrificed.’
