Spain, Italy and France dominate holiday choices for summer 2025 as over 55s lead the exodus to mainland Europe

New research from AllClear Travel Insurance reveals that Spain (31%), Italy (20%) and France (17%) are the top-choice holiday destinations for Brits this summer – with the over 55s leading the charge.

With schools soon closing for summer - and holiday peak season just weeks away - AllClear Travel Insurance surveyed a nationally representative sample of 2,000 adults about their holiday choices for this summer.

The allure of the Med came top, with 35% of UK adults saying they planned to holiday in Southern Europe this summer. The next most popular destinations comprised of; the Caribbean (13%), Northern Europe and Scandinavia (11%). Despite all the recent geo-political disruption, the popularity of North America as a holiday destination was unchanged on last summer at 10%. Overall, of those planning to holiday abroad this summer, 69% of respondents favour short-haul breaks over long-haul travel.

Interestingly it’s not festival-hopping students but older holidaymakers driving the Mediterranean boom this summer. AllClear’s research shows 42% of over 55s will be heading to Southern Europe – a significant jump from 35% last year.

Percentage of people choosing Southern Europe for their summer holiday - by age group

Top country choices for summer 2025:

Given the dominant popularity of Southern and Northern Europe for summer holidays this year, AllClear also asked UK holidaymakers what their top European country choices would be for an overseas getaway this summer. AllClear asked survey respondents which countries they ranked best for safety; which countries were viewed to be generally inexpensive places to visit - and also which places they rated highly for having good medical facilities.

· Spain emerged as the hot ticket for summer 2025 – the most popular European country to visit (31%). Spain also ticked all the boxes for safety, being a relatively inexpensive place to visit and for having good medical facilities.

· Italy (20%) France (17%) and Portugal (15%) were next on the list of top countries to visit on holiday. All of these countries were rated highly for safety and having good medical facilities, but less so for being relatively inexpensive places to go on holiday.

European countries that people plan to visit this summer – and which countries they rate highly for safely, medical facilities and for being relatively inexpensive to visit

[column percentages]

Garry Nelson, Head of Corporate Affairs at AllClear Travel Insurance commented: “Spain has always been a popular choice for guaranteed sunshine. What we see from our research this year is safety considerations are also important. The safety record of a country and having good medical facilities are factors that more closely align with the top country choices - more so than how cheap or affordable the country is to visit.”

“That said, whilst UK holidaymakers acknowledge the importance of good medical services in the countries they plan to visit, in some countries, this can also mean medical costs are higher too. Spain, for example, can have higher travel insurance costs than some other European countries because many clinics and hospitals - especially in tourist areas - are private and often don’t accept GHIC. With safety top of mind for many this year, we encourage all holidaymakers to ensure they take out travel insurance with comprehensive medical cover before they head off abroad this summer.”

The AllClear research also revealed that for UK holidaymakers with medical conditions, 69% of survey respondents said they would be having a European holiday this summer. Their top destination choices - Spain (28%), Italy (18%), France (17%), Portugal (15%), Germany (10%) and Switzerland (9%) – align with destinations they regard to be safe and having good medical facilities. For this group, safety factors are more important than price.

European countries that people with medical conditions plan to visit this summer – and which countries they rate highly for safely, medical facilities and for being relatively inexpensive to visit [column percentages]