Portugal Suffers With Brit Visitor Numbers

Portugal has suffered more than many other popular destinations in terms of foreign visitor numbers according to new figures from the office of national statistics (ONS).

It has been reported that the number of Britons taking a holiday in Portugal, dropped by 43% during the first 3 months of the year. The Algarve in particular took the brunt of the decline. In the first quarter of 2008, the ONS reports 400,000 Britons travelled to Portugal, yet one year later only 227,000 have travelled during the same period. Portugal was dislodged from the top 10 most visited destinations by Poland, which only saw a decline of 5,000 visitors in the first quarter of 2009.

The statistics reveal that Britons are taking 2.2m fewer trips to Europe, accounting for a decline of 20%. Yet the downturn is not only restricted to Europe, the number of trips taken by Britons worldwide fell by 21% year on year.

Many of the most popular destinations have suffered above average declines, including holidays to Spain and Italy, which have witnessed falls of more than 25% during the first quarter. Prague is one of the most popular city break destinations in Europe, yet trips to the Czech Republic – in particular Prague – also fell by more than half.

Overall, only 5 of the 31 countries investigated saw an increase in visitors from British travellers - Denmark, Romania, Turkey, Malta, and Slovakia.