A third of Brits are willing to get into debt in order to take a holiday, according to a survey by Lonely Planet.
And nine out of ten of its respondents said they value travel and experiences higher than they do material possessions.
Some 35% of the people surveyed said they would put the cost of a holiday on a credit card and 24% said they would sell possessions in order to raise the money for a trip away. A further 10% said they would take out a loan or overdraft to raise the funds necessary. Just 1% said they would not take a holiday because they didn’t have enough money.
But before you put your head in your hands at the nation’s lack of financial prudence, the survey also showed that 63% said they adjusted their lifestyle and spent less in order to afford a holiday and 61% said they would raid their savings.
The survey revealed that almost everyone put cultural sights at the top of their to-do lists with scenery and nature coming next (89%). Food and drink was an important factor, with 83% saying they rated this aspect of the holiday highly. Only 32% said chilling by the pool was an important part of their holiday.
Lonely Planet readers clearly are not the romantic types either – only 12% said finding love was important while away.
Lonely Planet commissioned the survey to celebrate the launch of its new full-colour guidebook series Discover.
Dinah Hatch
