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When it comes to holidays, British kids won’t be parted from their tech…or their mums

9th August 2016 Print

When asked for the one thing they would most like to take on holiday, almost half of the UK’s children (46 per cent) named a form of technology, with more than a third (37 per cent) saying they’d bring a phone or tablet. In comparison, just 13 per cent would bring a toy or teddy bear and less than one in ten said that the one thing they would most like to take on holiday is a pet.

Despite a yearning for tech, the traditional family holiday is still very much alive according to the UK’s children. Canvas Holidays has surveyed the nation’s six-to-12-year-olds to find out what holidays mean to them and what makes the perfect getaway.

The family aspect of holidays is important to British kids, when asked who they’d like to go on a holiday with, mum topped the list with 81 per cent, dad comes in second with 74 per cent and siblings come in fourth (sister – 42 per cent) and fifth (brother – 41 per cent), behind best friend with 45 per cent. Celebrities were not nearly as popular as fewer than one in 12 (8 per cent) would want to holiday with One Direction and just one in 20 chose Justin Bieber. Interestingly, Portuguese footballer, Cristiano Ronaldo, is twice as popular as England captain, Wayne Rooney, with seven per cent and three per cent choosing the players, respectively.

While playing on the beach tops the list of activities kids most want to do while on holiday (82 per cent of respondents choosing this option), more than a third (36 per cent) would like to play on their tablet. Water-based fun tops the holiday to-do list with swimming in a pool and in the sea coming in second and third (70 per cent and 65 per cent, respectively). Some traditional outdoor activities are much less popular with the UK’s young children, with fewer than one in six (15 per cent) who would choose to play cricket or rounders or one in five (18 per cent) who would go fishing.

When asked what holidays were for, the overwhelming response was ‘having fun’ (85 per cent), followed by more than half of respondents (55 per cent) who said that holidays are for spending time with family. The UK’s children are an adventurous bunch with ‘seeing new things’ and ‘exploring’ coming in third and fourth (42 per cent and 39 per cent, respectively) in the list, and one in five (20 per cent) said trying new food. Alarmingly, one in every six children (17 per cent) stated that holidays are for getting a suntan.

Canvas Holidays is offering one lucky family a free 2017 holiday. The family holiday experts have launched a writing competition for children to get creative and share their ultimate holiday experiences, either real or fictional. The winning story writer will be rewarded with a free European family holiday to the value of £1,500 and the shortlisted entries will be published online on the Canvas Holidays website. For more information and to enter the competition, please visit canvasholidays.co.uk/writingcomp.

More information on Canvas Holidays or to book, visit canvasholidays.co.uk.