Heavy snow caused a sharp decline in travel in and out of the UK in December, capping off a year of reduced activity, according to the Office of National Statistics.
The ONS recorded a 7% drop in visitor numbers to the UK in the last month of the year compared to 2009 whilst visits abroad fell by 15%.
The ONS says that in 2010 over all UK residents dropped off travelling abroad by 6%. Visitors to the UK fell by 1%.
However, leisure and business travel segments did show growth. In October to December 2010, the seasonally adjusted number of visits by foreigners to the UK remained the same compared to the same period in the previous year and associated spending went up 5%.
Over the same period, the seasonally adjusted number of visits abroad by UK residents fell by 9% and their spending fell by 7%.
Head of international passenger survey Roger Smith explained: “The December figures for 2010 give us the first opportunity to view trends for the whole of the last year.
"Travel to and from the UK has fallen compared to 2009, and it’s clear that some of this decline is linked to a number of extreme events, like the volcanic ash cloud and severe weather disruption.
"Visits abroad by UK residents appear subdued, but there are some positive signs for tourism to the UK, with the increase in holiday and business visits to the UK.”
by Dinah Hatch
