Giant’s Causeway and whale watching in Scotland top list of British ‘bucket-list’ experiences, poll finds

Many more likely to explore France, Spain and Italy than own country

Whale watching on Scotland's coast is a popular attraction for UK tourists (HEMEDIA)

Seeing the Giant’s Causeway, whale watching in Scotland and visiting the Roman Baths topped a list of British bucket-list aspirations, a new poll has found.

Spending the day at the Wimbledon tennis tournament, walking along Hadrian’s Wall and celebrating the summer solstice at Stonehenge also featured.

However, the survey of 2,000 adults revealed just how unexplored the UK really is, as respondents were more likely to have visited France, Spain and Italy than England’s home counties.

More than six in 10 (63 per cent) had spent time in Spain, compared to just a third who had been to Surrey and more British adults had visited France (67 per cent) than Cornwall, Manchester and London.

The same percentage had travelled across the globe to Australia as those who had been across the border to Aberdeenshire (16 per cent).

Although the Giant’s Causeway topped Britons’ home-based bucket list, only a quarter of the nation had visited Northern Ireland, where it is located.

“Despite a desire to tick off our British bucket list experiences, these results show how undiscovered the country actually is," said Graham Donoghue, chief executive of Sykes Holiday Cottages which commissioned the study. “Lots of us are more likely to get on a plane or a ferry and go abroad than take in everything the UK has to offer.

“Although it’s brilliant to travel to other countries and cultures, many people would be surprised at how much there is to see just a hundred miles away from their hometown".

The poll also found the average respondent had visited just 15 out of nearly 50 counties in the UK – although more than one in 10 (11 per cent) admitted they had been to a maximum of three.

The historic Roman Baths in Somerset were among the UK's favourite places to visit (Henry Nicholls SWNS.com)

In comparison, the average person had travelled to 10 different countries around the world.

The north-south divide was also apparent in travel choices, as almost one in five southerners said they had never ventured up north.

And nearly half (48 per cent) of the population of Wales and Scotland had never been to each other’s country.

The decision to holiday abroad may have affected respondent’s knowledge of the UK, as a tenth of those survey thought Land’s End was in Scotland – when it is actually at the very foot of Cornwall.

A further 12 per cent thought the Brecon Beacons was in Scotland, and six per cent were even convinced London was in the north west of the country.

Nearly one in four (24 per cent) of those polled via OnePoll.com admitted they had not done a summer “staycation” in over five years, but the majority said they would like to spend more time exploring the UK.

SWNS