Trivial Pursuits: Britons Clock Up More Holiday Hours Drinking and Sunbathing Than Fellow Europeans

LONDON - TripAdvisor Reveals Holiday Habits of British, French, German, Italian & Spanish Travellers

- With Photos

A new survey by TripAdvisor(R), the world’s most popular and largest travel community, has revealed snapshots of 24 hours in the average summer holidays of British, French, German, Italian and Spanish travellers. Whilst Britons clock up more time sunbathing and drinking in bars than their European counterparts, they also spend the least amount of time pursuing cultural activities.

The survey of 2,852 travellers reveals the length of time that each nationality spends on an array of popular pastimes over the course of an average day of their holiday, including active pursuits, dancing and dining. (For full breakdown of results, see Notes to Editors).

Tanning Time: Britons Soak Up Most Rays

Despite prominent sun-safety campaigns, British travellers lead the charge when it comes to sunbathing on holiday, spending an average of two hours and 53 minutes per day catching rays. The Spanish are the most restrained, averaging one hour and 58 minutes of tanning time.

Propping Up the Bar: Britons Clock Up Most Drinking Time

British travellers are the most adept at propping up the bar on holiday, spending an average of one hour and 38 minutes per day enjoying the local brew. Meanwhile, Italians are the most conservative when it comes to alcohol, spending 49 minutes per day in bars.

Cultural Pursuits: Britons Bring Up the Rear

Visiting museums and taking in the local architecture is less of a priority to Britons than other nationalities. Despite spending an average of two hours and 17 minutes per day on such pursuits, Britons bring up the cultural rear, whilst Spanish travellers claim the official ‘culture vulture’ mantle, spending three hours and 28 minutes a day indulging in high-brow activities.

Summer Loving: Italian Couples Cosy Up

Italians spend a whopping four hours and 31 minutes per day enjoying quality couples-time on holiday, whilst Britons average just 47 minutes. However, the French, considered by many to be a nation of great romantics, bring up the rear - spending just 29 minutes of quality time à deux.

From Discos, to Dining: Further TripAdvisor Findings

The survey also reveals that Spanish travellers are Europe’s dancing queens, clocking up 31 minutes per day on the dance-floor, compared to Britons’ paltry eight minutes. However, Britons’ stamina shines through when it comes to both shopping and dining in restaurants, with Brits leading the charge on both fronts. Meanwhile, German travellers are the masters of active pursuits, spending three hours and 37 minutes per day indulging in hiking, swimming and more.

Luke Fredberg, TripAdvisor spokesman, said: “Britons seek out a veritable smorgasbord of activities during their summer holidays, with sun, shopping and sangria proving ever-popular pastimes. And although the survey shows we may not be the biggest ‘culture vultures’, we certainly place great value on also enjoying more cultural pursuits on our holidays.”

Notes to Editors

2,852 travellers took part in the TripAdvisor survey (May 2009), including 852 British travellers.

Full breakdown of timings: UK France Germany Italy Spain 163 137 mins 155 mins 163 mins mins 208 mins (2h, 17 (2h, 35 (2h, 43 (2h, 43 (3h, 28 Cultural Activities mins) mins) mins) mins) mins) 120 148 mins 217 mins mins 182 mins 122 mins (2h, 28 (3h, 37 (2 (3h, 2 Active Pursuits (2h, 2 mins) mins) mins) hours) mins) 160 173 mins 141 mins 127 mins mins 118 mins (2h, 53 (2h, 21 (2h, 7 (2h, 40 (1h, 58 Sunbathing mins) mins) mins) mins) mins) 96 mins 87 mins 92 mins 74 mins 92 mins (1h, 36 (1h, 27 (1h, 32 (1h, 14 (1h, 32 Shopping mins) mins) mins) mins) mins) 271 88 mins mins 86 mins (1h, 28 (4h, 31 (1h, 26 Romancing 47 mins 29 mins mins) mins) mins) 108 167 mins 137 mins 130 mins mins 115 mins Dining in (2h, 47 (2h, 17 (2h, 10 (1h, 48 (1h, 55 Restaurants mins) mins) mins) mins) mins) 98 mins 68 mins 81 mins (1h, 38 (1h, 8 (1h, 21 Drinking in Bars mins) 50 mins mins) 49 mins mins) Dancing in Clubs 8 mins 22 mins 15 mins 23 mins 31 mins 428 470 mins 500 mins mins 451 mins (7h, 50 (8h, 20 480 mins (7h, 8 (7h, 31 Sleeping mins) mins) (8 hours) mins) mins) 171 mins 76 mins 122 mins (2h, 51 60 mins (1h, 16 Other (2h, 2 mins) mins) (1 hour) 44 mins mins)

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*Source: comScore Media Metrix, March 2009

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Source: TripAdvisor

For further information or high-res illustrations, please contact: Amelie Hurst, +44-(0)20-3320-3244, +44-(0)7791-605-888, ahurst at tripadvisor.com