Staycations on the rise, predicts report - how more visitors would boost Shropshire economy
The staycation looks set to stick around as families continue to choose local attractions over travelling abroad.
New figures reveal about 85 per cent of people plan to take a domestic holiday between now and the end of 2016 – a three per cent rise on last year.
The report, released by Greene King Leisure Spend Tracker, comes after a Shropshire travel agent claimed the county is missing out on millions of pounds due to a lack of foreign visitors.
Janet Redler Travel & Tourism said that if just 10 per cent of the visitors who go to the Brecon Beacons National Park came to the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, it could boost the local economy by as much as £8 million.
Simon McCloy, chief executive of Shropshire Tourism, said the domestic market is "easy to reach and more cost-effective to market to target".
The staycation took off during the economic downturn and looks set to continue for the foreseeable future.
Instead of leaving the country, holidaymakers are choosing to see the sights around England, Wales and Scotland or to stay at home to visit nearby sites.
Attingham Park, near Shrewsbury, and Sunnycroft, Wellington, have both seen year-on-year increases of visitors since March 2012, while visitors to Dudmaston, near Bridgnorth, have nearly doubled.
Jo Armstrong, marketing and communications consultant for the National Trust, said the charity was "experiencing a rise in the number of visitors to our special places across Shropshire".
She added that the visitor figures so far this financial year are showing a similar upward trend, despite the changeable weather.
From the Greene King report, households say they are "optimistic" about their holiday plans despite uncertainty around today's EU referendum, with 71 per cent expecting to take at least one trip between now and the end of the year.
The average British household spent three per cent less on out-of-home leisure in May than the same time last year, at a total of £207 – likely because the school half-term holiday fell in June.
The amount households spent on drinking out increased once more in May, by five per cent on April and two per cent year-on-year.
The impact of the Easter school holidays in April saw households with children reduce spending in May by £30, or 12 per cent, month-on-month – while households without youngsters actually increased spending by £13.
