Appetite for holidays 'strong despite recession'

The credit crunch and the recession will not stop Britons taking their cross channel ferry breaks and other holidays this year, according to new research.

Eurostar carried out a survey of British adults which found that 68 per cent plan to take a holiday of five nights or more in 2009, compared to 65 per cent last year.

Holidays were listed ahead of eating out, buying new clothes and entertainment in the list of people's spending priorities for the coming year.

Half of the respondents to the survey said they will stick to "tried and tested" holiday hotspots such as France and Spain this year, while only 17 per cent said the exchange rate would be a major factor in their choice of destination.

Eurostar chief executive Richard Brown said: "It is clear from this report that we value our holidays now more than ever, as we prioritise the need to escape and recharge the batteries. However, with all the compromises that people are making to ensure they can still get away, overall value has never been so important."

The rail operator's services from London and south-east England to north-east France place it in competition with P&O Ferries and Seafrance, which both provide ferries from Dover to Calais.

Other cross channel ferry options include the Dover to Boulogne and Portsmouth to Le Havre ferry crossings operated by LD Lines.

Written by Mark Robinson