£64bn spent on holidays as Brits choose celebrity hotspots

£64 billion is being spent by the UK on holidays each year, with over a third of UK holidaymakers being swayed into their choice of holiday destination thanks to the locations reputation as a ‘celebrity hotspot'.

As people chase the celebrity hotspots such as St Tropez, Rio de Janeiro and Dubai, research from private bank Cater Allen shows that nearly half of us (46 per cent) believe that the holiday we take reflects on us as individuals. As such, holidays have become the most important expense to people outside of buying a home and investing for the future.

Around one in five of us spend over £2,500 on holidays each year, with 32 percent spending over a 10 percent of their annual income going abroad.

People in the South West and Wales are the least likely to splash out on buying a holiday with people in the South East spending the most. However people in the South East are also the most likely across the UK to put the cost of going on holiday on credit rather than choosing to save or use the money they have.

The cost of ‘Sunny Money'

The two most preferred ways of spending whilst abroad is by debit card (41 per cent) and cash (79 per cent), with most people opting to get their cash out in advance through the post office, retail store or bank. However Cater Allen urges customers to look carefully at the cost of taking out cash in advance of their trip and also the various charges incurred on their debit card arrangements for overseas transactions.

Sally Watts, Head of Marketing at Cater Allen, said: "Apart from the obvious security risks of taking too much cash with you when you travel, the costs associated with transferring cash before you leave or using your debit or credit card while abroad can be staggering. It's your hard earned cash and even though you are on holiday your money should always be working for you".

Customers of Cater Allen who hold currency accounts benefit from paying no charges on overseas transactions in the same currency. In addition, customers are able to choose the currency of their account from Euro, Dollar and Sterling, and can even continue to earn interest on the balance of their account once they have used their debit card for purchases.

Sally Watts, continued: "We believe Cater Allen offers a good solution for those using their debit card abroad. We are the only bank offering the combination of no fees, currency accounts and the capability to continue to earn interest on money that has already been spent.

Cater Allen's Private Bank accounts offer: -

A choice of currency accounts in Euro, Dollar or Sterling
No charge on account transfers between a client's Cater Allen accounts
No charge on same currency cash transactions
No charge on same currency point of sale transactions
Multi-currency account

Cater Allen allows customers to hold currency accounts in Euros, Dollars or Sterling - with a minimum balance of just £5,000, €10,000 or $10,000. Transfers between the accounts do not incur any transaction fees.

Unlike most traditional private banks, Cater Allen offers more ‘inclusive' banking that requires a minimum cash deposit of just £5,000, but offers access to the superior service associated with a private bank.

For more information, visit caterallen.co.uk