24 June 2011

Family Travel Habits Have Changed Dramatically

Unlike previous generations most families now head abroad on holiday a trend that is likely to continue.

**Children are travelling a lot more frequently than previous generations, new research has found.

**

Insurance firm Aviva found that 94 per cent of children have been abroad by the age of 16 whereas only 4 in 10 of their parents had at that age.

In just one generation the way that families travel has changed dramatically, as more children are going abroad to a wider range of destinations.

A survey of over a 1,000 adults found that the proportion of families going overseas for their holidays or other reasons as increased significantly.

Children are travelling further afield to a wide range of locations than their parents ever did travel.Back when parents were under the age of 16 just 2 per cent of them had been to North America where over a quarter of their children have visited the USA or Canada.

The research found that the percentage people are taking their children on holiday once a year has risen from 30 per cent to 50 per cent.Children who are now going abroad more than once a year has risen from 8 per cent to 12 per cent.

What all parents should to be looking for this summer is comprehensive and cheap travel insurance.If you are travelling away more frequently with children it could be worth investing in an annual travel policy.

"It is often said that the world is getting smaller and nowhere is the huge increase in the extent of our travel more apparent than the distances and range of places that people have been to before the age of 16. Children nowadays are better travelled and have experienced a wider range of cultures than ever before,” said Jerry Finch, travel insurance product manager.

"However, we have seen recently that travellers have been affected by an increased risk of disruption to their plans. It is therefore important that people have the right level of cover to ensure that even if their arrangements are hit by unavoidable events, they are not left to pay the price.”

When travelling abroad with a family you want to ensure that you have the best possible car hire available especially if you're travelling with children under the age of 16.Check out our car hire hub for competitive prices.