Holidaymakers carried away by debt

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Around 22% of people admitted it took them up to a year to pay for their last main holiday, while 2% said they still had not cleared the bill.

Just under half of people said they did not save the full amount they needed before they went away, according to Alliance & Leicester.

At the same time, 27% said they had overspent on their last break, 9% of whom went more than £500 over budget.

A fifth of those who went over budget put the extra spending on their credit card, despite having no immediate way of clearing the debt, while a further 20% admitted they would have to put off purchases and budget carefully once they got home.

The research found the majority of people take two trips a year, with 11% taking five or more breaks, rising to 13% among the over 55s.

Men were twice as likely as women to go on another holiday before they had paid for their previous one, with 12% admitting they did this, compared with 6% of women.

Ross Dalzell, manager for savings at Alliance & Leicester, said: "It's easy to get carried away with the holiday spirit as we all want to make the most of our time away, however, many holidaymakers run the risk of letting their holiday dreams turn into a potential financial nightmare.

"So much time and effort is put into booking and planning our holidays, it's important that the same attention is given to considering how to fund them."

YouGov questioned 2,315 people during May.