Expensive holidays are still seen as an ‘essential’ luxury

Britons still consider holidays and weekend breaks to be lifestyle “essentials” despite the ongoing squeeze on household incomes.

More than £83 billion is spent on holidays and weekend breaks every year, according to new research by insurer LV=. It found that Britons have spent £158bn in the last year on what they see as lifestyle essentials, which also include meals out, TV subscriptions and cinema trips. Total spending on “lifestyle essentials” averages £6,194, up from £5,850 in 2011, due partly to the increased cost of those items.

Holidays and weekend breaks are the top lifestyle “essential”, according to 44 per cent of those surveyed by LV=, with total spending on them rising by nearly £2bn since August 2011.

Nights out, restaurant meals, arts and culture, haircuts and takeaway food are also in the top ten, although households are spending less on their daily shop-bought coffee than they were last year.

Mark Jones, head of protection at LV=, said: “It is no surprise that people are trying to ‘keep calm and carry on’, and making cutbacks in other areas to maintain the little luxuries in their life.”