According to Barclays, spending with travel agents went up in 2025 despite the uncertain economic outlook and challenging geopolitical climate, albeit at less than half the rate it did in 2024.
Consumers spent 3.2% more with travel agents in 2025 than they did in 2024, the bank's end of year Consumer Spend Report revealed. This is down from growth of +7.9% a year earlier.
However, spending with travel agents outpaced overall growth in consumer spending on travel in 2025 of 2.7%, which itself was down from +6.9% in 2024.
Barclays characterised spending on travel in 2025 as "resilient", with the average consumer spending some £1,158. It also placed travel among several spending categories consumers have been most protective of.
The sector also performed favourably against a slow down in non-essential spending growth, which fell back from +1.9% in 2024 to +0.8% in 2025.
In addition, after two consecutive years of growth, consumer card spending declined by 0.2% in 2025 after growth of +4.1% in 2023 and +1.6% in 2024.
"Confidence in the UK economy remained low across the year, with a monthly average of one in four adults (24%) feeling confident in the nation’s economic strength," said Barclays.
"Some non-essential categories, such as beauty, travel and entertainment, bucked the general decline in spend as shoppers once again prioritised affordable treats and experiences that bring them joy."
Accompanying consumer research by Barclays highlighted some of the ways consumers reigned in their spending on travel such as by travelling during off-peak periods or shoulder seasons (54%) and using AI tools to plan and budget for their holidays (27%).
Among those using AI to manage their travel, the main uses were creating itineraries (35%), researching and choosing destinations (32%) and translation (30%), with just over a quarter (27%) using AI-powered tools to find and compare prices, discounts and deals.
Karen Johnson, head of retail at Barclays, said: “While confidence in the UK economy has declined, UK households’ confidence in their ability to manage their money has remained strong, translating into the resilient performance of categories such as travel, entertainment and beauty.
"It is encouraging to see that through purposeful spending, consumers continue to prioritise the things that bring them joy, unlocking the potential for UK economic growth."
Travel agents also recorded 8.1% more transactions in 2025 than they did in 2024, although like spending, this still representations a contraction from +14% in 2024.
There was also a sharper downturn in face-to-face spending compared with online spending. Face-to-face spending declined by 1.4% in 2025 compared with growth of 4.1% in 2024, whereas online spending increased by 1.2% in 2025 following growth of 4% in 2024.
The report is based on consumer card spending with Barclays during the period from 25 December 2023 to 20 November 2024 compared with the period from 25 December 2024 to 21 December 2025.
Barclays accompanying consumer research was based on a representative survey of 2,000 UK adults carried out by Opinium Research.
