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Palma.—The number of Britons choosing to travel overseas is continuing to decline as household budgets are squeezed and poor exchange rates make holidaying in a foreign country less attractive.

However, the number of foreign visitors to the United Kingdom continues to climb.
Last year was the fourth in a row in which overseas travel figures fell.
In 2009 there was a 15 per cent decline in visits to other countries by residents of the UK and in 2010 the drop was five per cent.
All time high
According to the Office for National Statistics, which has been collecting figures for the past 50 years, visits to Britain are at their highest levels ever. This is partly due to the fact that, since the world took an economic tumble in 2007, the pound has lost around 25 per cent of its value.

In 2006, the number of UK residents travelling abroad hit an all time high of nearly 69.5 million.
Since then the number has dropped by 20 per cent to 55.6 million, according to the ONS.
The countries most favoured by British holiday makers remain Spain and France, followed by the USA, Ireland and Italy. Visitors to the UK come primarily from France followed by Germany, the USA, the Irish Republic and Spain.

55.6 million
The ONS figures show that in the past half-century, the number of visits abroad by UK citizens has risen 16-fold from 3.3 million in 1961 to 55.6 million in 2010.

In terms of visitors to the United Kingdom there has been a 15-fold increase from 1.9 million to 29.8 million.