UK residents made 70.8 million visits in the calendar year, the first time the figure, which includes holidays, business travel and visiting friends and relatives, has surpassed the 2006 record of 69.5 million.
The figures were disclosed in the latest Travel Trends report from the Office for National Statistics, which said: “In general, visitor numbers have increased over time, from 42 million in 1996, although the number of visits fell sharply in 2009 in the wake of the economic downturn.
