British tourists avoid Spain because it’s ‘no longer foreign enough’
Friday, February 19, 2010 @ 11:35 PM
The proliferation of English bars and eateries in Spanish coastal resorts is eroding the country’s attraction as a holiday destination because Britons no longer consider it foreign enough.
Pubs with names such as Billy’s Bar or The Princess Di Bar — which tempt tourists with Premier League football and traditional pub grub — are putting off visitors who are looking for something more exotic.
The thought of travelling abroad only to spend your holiday bumping into neighbours is another reason that Britons are heading elsewhere, according to a survey by the online travel agent sunshine.co.uk.
Figures from the Spanish Tourism Institute showed that the number of British tourists who visited last year fell 15 per cent compared with 2008. Of 1,327 people questioned for the survey 59 per cent said that Spain was no longer foreign enough, although nearly a third — 32 per cent — enjoyed the sense of familiarity that British food and bars gave them. Resorts such as Benidorm on the Costa Blanca and Torremolinos, Fuengirola and Benalmadena on the Costa del Sol have traditionally tempted Britons with sun, sea and a taste of home.
Julia Fossi, 41, the co-owner of Fish and Chips Barcelona, an English restaurant, said that her clientele reflected the results of the survey. “We mostly get Spaniards in, or some local Brits. Not the tourists,” she said.
On the seafront in Fuengirola, Shirley Webb, of Bayside Diner — with lamb chops and Cumberland sausages on the menu — said: “The euro has meant people complain their pound does not go so far, but business has not gone down.”
The survey showed that the US was the most popular destination measured by the growth of bookings, with some British tourists attracted by the prospect of “meeting a celebrity”. Spain was relegated to the third most popular destination for Britons by the strength of the euro.