The ‘Rihanna effect’ – and other surprising factors behind where we go on holiday

What makes a holiday destination successful? It’s a trickier alchemy than you might expect. A new survey by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) has highlighted how Britons’ travel trends have changed since 1995, and revealed the influences that make destinations fall in – and out – of favour.

The International Passenger Survey has been used to record the habits of UK holidaymakers since 1961, compiling the results of over 700,000 annual household surveys. For the most recent results, announced today, holiday comparison website TravelSupermarket has created a series of graphs to illustrate our changing tastes.

Current popular destinations, such as the Caribbean and the UAE, have seen great gains in tourism from Britons over the past 20 years – and there have been some key influencers on our tastes, ranging from the global financial crisis to pop star Rihanna.

In 1995, roughly 25,000 UK nationals ventured to the UAE – to the fledgling regions of Dubai and Abu Dhabi – but in 2015 that figure reached over 400,000. TravelSupermarket credits the second Sex and the City film, which was set in Abu Dhabi, with enticinging holidaymakers – but we think the country's increasingly outlandish hotels have had more of an effect on tourism. 

Jamaica – one of the most visited countries in the Caribbean – welcomed a little over 50,000 UK holidaymakers in 1995, but last year almost 150,000 Britons explored the island.

Nearby Barbados has seen some huge peaks and troughs, and suffered greatly with the financial crisis – but it has made spectacular gains since 2014, rising from 60,000 visitors to more than 100,000 in just 12 months. The reason? Many have praised Rihanna’s starring role in a 2013 tourism campaign for boosting UK visitor numbers by over 40,000.

Canada has had a tumultuous time over the years: while it was on an upward trajectory between 1995 and 2000, the September 11 terrorist attacks and a SARS outbreak in 2003 greatly discouraged visitors. Now, the country hosts fewer UK travellers than ever: last year’s figures reached just 140,000, compared with a peak of 360,000 in 2000.

Over the last 10 years, Australia has fallen off UK holidaymakers’ wishlists too: it peaked in popularity in 2005 with 270,000 visitors, but last year welcomed 120,000.

Thailand has been a slow burner over the last 20 years, despite a devastating outbreak of bird flu and the Boxing Day tsunami. It remains a popular destination with sunseekers and backpackers, and last year saw over 300,000 British visitors.

Mexico has also seen a meteoric rise in popularity, weathering the likes of Hurricane Wilma and swine flu to reach almost 500,000 tourists in 2015 – compared with just 50,000 in 1995.

The survey highlighted how resilient British travellers can be: for example, they weren’t deterred by India’s catastrophic bird flu outbreak in 2003. Instead, the monsoon floods of 2007 and the global financial crisis of 2008 caused greater damage to the country’s appeal.

South Africa has also had a rocky road since 1995. The 2010 Fifa World Cup and the weakening of the Rand in 2015 lead to uplifts in figures – but UK visitor numbers are now only up roughly 50,000 since 1995.

Tourism in the US has taken some hard knocks over the years, but surprisingly September 11 and the global financial crisis don't seem to have deterred British tourists. Since 2013, the its popularity has been on the rise again – but it remains to be seen how this year’s election (and a possible Trump presidency) will affect visitor numbers.