A WORCESTER-based tour operator has welcomed news that British people are taking millions more trips within their own country and confirmed bookings have soared.

They are making nearly 25 million more trips a year to see friends and relations than a decade ago, according to the English Tourism Council.

From 1990 to 1999, growth in visits by UK residents to friends and relatives in England outstripped all other kinds of domestic tourism trips, rising by 138 per cent to 42.2m compared with a 59 per cent growth overall.

The trend is also similar for overseas visitors, with a 44.2 per cent increase in visits to friends and relatives in England, to 4.2m in 1998, compared with a 33 per cent overall increase in tourism trips.

The report, carried out by the English Tourism Council, also showed that 15-24 year-olds are responsible for a large part of the growth, making 39 per cent of all visits in 1999.

The rise in student numbers, a general increase in the mobility of the population as a whole and increasing car ownership are thought to be major factors.

The report also showed a pattern in tourism.

People are taking more short breaks, with the biggest growth being visits to large cities and towns. We are also turning into a nation of day-trippers, with a 48 per cent increase, between 1994 and 1998.

"Holiday habits are changing all the time and in the fast moving world of travel and tourism it's important to get a view of the bigger picture," said Mary Lynch, English Tourism Council chief executive.

"Social changes, developments in technology and economic growth will all have an influence on how we like to spend our leisure time. This report will help us to understand those trends so that we can build a picture of what English Tourism will look like in the 21st century."

Discover Britain, based in Pierpoint Street, Worcester, welcomed the statistics and said the influx of tourists was also positive.

"Bookings are up 25 per cent on last year," said spokesperson Mary Matthews. "There are many long-haul bookings and the future looks healthy."

She added that many people from Germany, The Netherlands, and the Scandinavian countries were now flocking to Britain.