Abta has predicted Good Friday will be the busiest day for travel while Spain, spearheaded by the Costa del Sol the Canaries and the Balearics, is the most popular destination.

Portugal’s Algarve and southern Turkey will also be busy while popular long haul destinations include Florida, Cuba, Cape Verde, Dominican Republic, Jamaica and Thailand.

Paris, Rome, Barcelona and New York are all top choices for those taking a city break while winter sports lovers are getting the last of their powder fixes.

Heathrow will remain the most popular airport with 425,000 departures predicted, followed by 250,000 from Gatwick. Also in the London region are predicted 153,000 from Stansted and 87,000 from Luton.  

Manchester airport remains the busiest regional one with 150,000 departures predicted while Birmingham is on 70,000, Liverpool on 63,000, 50,000 from Bristol.

Scottish airports are predicted to see 100,000 departures over the weekend while Eurostar is predicting 82,000 departing passengers, most of whom are going to Paris.

Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer said: “While many families may have already begun their Easter break, the Easter weekend is always a busy time of year for the travel industry with many holidaymakers taking advantage of the bank holidays to grab some much needed sunshine or a trip to one of the world’s great cities.

“The roads will be busy, so we would recommend leaving a little extra time to get to your port of departure and if using public transport, to check in advance for engineering works.”

Meanwhile, VisitEngland is predicting as many as 6.6 million Brits are planning an overnight holiday trip in the UK over Easter.

The figure represents a 10% boost on 2016 while the visitor numbers for 2015 was five million. A total of £1.7 billion will be spent because of the stays.

Tourism minister Tracey Crouch said: "The UK is a world-class tourism destination with countless things to see and do, so it is no surprise that so many of us are planning to holiday at home this Easter.

“Staycations are integral to our thriving tourism industry, providing a significant boost to cities, towns, villages, and communities across the country."



VisitEngland director Patricia Yates said: “It is great to see so many Brits are planning holidays at home this Easter.

“The Easter break is a fantastic opportunity to get out and explore the outstanding accommodation, events and attractions right here on our doorstep whether enjoying a holiday at the seaside, countryside or on a city break.”