EU tourists shun British holidays even though a drop in the value of the pound made breaks in the UK cheaper
- EU tourists are shunning Britain, according to the Office for National Statistics
- Continued Brexit uncertainty may have been a factor in the declining figures
- Meanwhile the number of visitors from the US and Canada was up 10 per cent
EU tourists are shunning Britain even though a drop in the value of the pound has made holidays here cheaper.
The number of European visitors in April was 8 per cent down on the previous year, with the biggest fall among holidaymakers from other EU countries, the Office for National Statistics said.
Continued Brexit uncertainty may have been a factor – as there was a sharp rise in tourists from the US.
EU tourists are shunning Britain even though a drop in the value of the pound has made holidays here cheaper
In the three months between March and May, the number of visitors from the US and Canada was up 10 per cent on 2018 at 1.2million.
The number of EU tourists was down 6 per cent at 6.9million, and numbers from the rest of the world fell 7 per cent to 1.2million.
Visitors spent £1.6billion during April, a 14 per cent drop on last year. While in March a pound bought 1.18 euros and $1.33, yesterday it was worth only 1.10 euros and $1.22.
Britons made 13.6million visits to Europe between March and May, up 2 per cent on 2018, the ONS said.
The number of European visitors in April was 8 per cent down on the previous year, with the biggest fall among holidaymakers from other EU countries, the Office for National Statistics said