UK holidaymakers are set to spend more money on their trips in 2016 than during this year, and they are also likely to be more adventurous in their choice of destinations.

These were among the key findings from Abta’s Holiday Habits Report, which found that 23% of consumers were expecting to spend more on their holidays next year – up from 20% who planned to increase their expenditure on tourism last year.

Almost one fifth (18%) of consumers want to travel to a country they have not visited before, compared with only 9% who were planning to do this in 2015. There has also been an increase in travellers who want to try a new resort or city from 10% last year to 23% for 2016.

More good news for the travel industry is that the average number of annual holidays has crept up to 3.2 in 2015, compared to an average of three breaks last year. The 3.2 figure breaks down as 1.7 UK breaks and 1.5 overseas trips on average.

Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer said: “Our research findings suggest that this growth is being driven by more affluent consumers. “The average number of holidays taken per person is increasing while at the same time there has been a continued slight decline in the total number of people taking a holiday.”

Overall, 77% of British residents took a holiday within the UK or abroad during the 12 months to August 2015. This was a decline on 2014’s figure of 80%, with the domestic market bearing the brunt of the fall.

The number of people taking an overseas holiday rose slightly from 53% last year to 54% in 2015. But this is still below 2011 levels when 63% took a trip abroad. Package deals Around half of respondents (47%) took an overseas package holiday in 2015 (down from 51% last year). But only 22% booked a UK holiday as a package (24% in 2014). The top reasons for booking a package were because it was the best-value option (54%), having everything taken care of (46%), convenience (42%) and wanting an all-inclusive holiday (41%).

In terms of sales patterns, 17% of customers booked overseas trips with a high street travel agent while 32% used an online travel agency. But there were major regional variations in the use of high street agencies, which were highest in the north-east with 32%, but lowest in London, the south-east and south-west.

The most notable change was a 20-percentage point increase in those booking an overseas holiday directly with service providers, which rose from 34% in 2014 to 54% this year.

Abta said this could be down to the increased popularity of city breaks, which are more commonly booked directly with suppliers. The report highlights other regional trends, such as consumers in the north-west being most likely to take an all-inclusive holiday, while more Yorkshire holidaymakers left their bookings until the last minute than elsewhere. Londoners also took more breaks than other UK regions (20% took at least four holidays in 2015).

Despite the growth in mobile devices, Abta found that desktop computers are still the most popular way to make online bookings, with 91% of consumers booking this way. Booking through tablets has risen to 24% from 18% in 2014, and smartphones are being used by 16% of people for travel purchases – a fall of one point from last year.

Victoria Bacon, Abta’s head of brand and business development, said: “While smartphones have a long way to go to catch up with PCs and tablets, their popularity among younger age groups suggests they will grow in relevance.”