The sun shines brighter on the other side

So people weren't convinced by the advertising campaign to persuade them to holiday in Britain, what a surprise. This is part of an article written by Bev Fearis published on a travel website today and reflects what most people always knew - a high percentage of people who choose to holiday abroad do so because of the weather and whatever wonderful things you can say about the UK, no one can guarantee the weather, whatever time of year, and there cannot be many more miserable family holidays than huddled on a cold wet beach! Also of course at the moment, the good £ to euro exchange rate makes the eurozone more attractive. It makes me think the British Tourist Board is about as useful as the Greek Tourist Board!

"The Government"s "Holiday at Home" advertising campaign was a bit of a flop, according to a YouGov survey.

The campaign was launched in March by Visit England and regional tourist boards to encourage Brits to stay on home soil for their holidays.

It was heavily criticised by ABTA who said it was misguided and a waste of public funds (see earlier story).

According to an April survey of 2,000 adults commissioned by prepaid currency card provider, Caxton FX, 67% of Brits still plan to holiday abroad this summer.

A further 13% admitted that they hadn"t seen the campaign at all and, for one in every 25 people, the advertising campaign has actually made them less likely to holiday in Britain.

Caxton FX MD James Hickman said: "In spite of substantial investment, it seems that Brits are still committed to holidays abroad and with the pound currently very high against the euro, holidays abroad can offer good value - especially for those people who would prefer to avoid the Olympics this summer!"