Taking photos overtakes sightseeing as the thing that the British love doing when on holiday – new survey suggests

Lone tourist woman kneeling down with compact camera in Rome.

British holidaymakers now consider taking photos the second most important element of their trip, trumped only by enjoying a good meal in a fancy restaurant.

That's according to a new study conducted by MPB – the photography equipment resale platform – which recently surveyed 1,000 British adult holidaymakers who said they take photos “most days” or “every day” during their trips.

According to the data, which was collected earlier this month, nearly two-thirds (64%) of respondents deemed “taking photos” an important part of their holiday, pipped only by “dining at a nice restaurant” (66% of respondents).

The average Brit abroad prefers photographing wildlife and beaches, according to the survey (Image credit: MPB)

While enjoying a fancy meal is the favorite pastime for Brits abroad, according to the data, photography has usurped other traditional holiday itinerary activities, with visiting cultural sites (63%), shopping (63%), and sightseeing (63%) now the third, fourth and fifth most-important, respectively.

In fact, a further 22% of British holidaymakers said that taking photos is an “essential part” of their trip, with the average person now shooting 256 images, and 1 in 10 coming home with over 500 frames.

But it’s not just snapping frames, it's the quality of them too. According to the data, almost every respondent (95%) had spent extra money to get better photos, with the average British holidaymaker now willing to part with more than £136 ($181 / AU$259) for better photos.

According to the MPB survey, British holidaymakers aren't afraid to splash the cash for good holiday images (Image credit: MPB)

What’s more, over a quarter of respondents (27%) said they're willing to spend between £200–£500 ($266–$666 / AU$380–AU$951) to be upgraded to a more photogenic room. While 1 in 8 Brits abroad will even hire a professional photographer for their holiday snaps.

In truth, I’m not sure how representative this survey truly is, considering it didn't include respondents who don’t take photos at least “most days” during their trips. However, I have no doubt that photography has become way more important to British holidaymakers in recent years due to smartphone convenience and the pressure to impress on social media.

I have to say though, even as a photographer, it's a toss up for me between getting a nice sunset shot and treating myself to a seafood paella. God I love decent Spanish paella…

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