UK tourists ’seek out home comforts’

Britons are failing to enjoy what foreign cuisine has to offer while abroad, a survey has shown. 

Travel agent sunshine revealed that around a quarter (27%) of UK tourists only eat food that they could just as easily eat at home.

Results also show that 55% actively seek out home comforts while abroad, such as hunting down a restaurant serving up British food. 

Some examples of those failing to immerse themselves in local culture include the 25% who look for British bars, the 21% who want to watch UK television, the 17% who visit British stores and the 12% who buy British brands.

Meanwhile, only 9% said they tried to speak the language of the country they visited on their last holiday, while 48% said they expect the locals to speak English.

On the other hand, just over a fifth (21%) of Britons abroad said they actively avoided home comforts, with two in three of these saying they adopt this attitude so they can experience something different. 

Sunshine co-founder Chris Brown described how he thinks tourists are missing out if they just fly out of Heathrow or Stansted and live as if they had just stayed at home.

He said: “I think it’s a real shame when British holidaymakers don’t attempt to try the language or cuisine of the country they are visiting.

“It seems a waste to fly thousands of miles away on holiday and just end up seeking out British home comforts.”

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