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Brollies and sunglasses required for bank holiday weekend
28 Aug 2009Many Britons staying at home over the Bank Holiday weekend can look forward to a dose of sunshine - but some will also need to keep their umbrellas handy.
Almost two million people will head abroad this weekend, but those opting for a "staycation" will have to contend with busy roads and disrupted rail services, along with the risk of rainfall.
Forecasters predict a mixture of sunny spells and showers and windy conditions today, tomorrow and Sunday.
But the outlook for Monday is brighter with temperatures expected to hit 25C in London.
Steve Ellison, forecaster at MeteoGroup, the Press Association's weather division, said there will be blustery and showery conditions today, but England and Wales will have mostly fine and dry weather tomorrow thanks to high pressure building over the south of the country.
He said: "A ridge of high pressure over southern areas means tomorrow will be dry for much of England and Wales with just a few light showers in the North and Scotland.
"On Sunday, cloud will spread from the South West with a few spots of drizzle. It will remain breezy with temperatures around 20C.
"Monday will be a warm, dry day across south-east England. Temperatures will reach around 25C in London."
But he warned there will be cloud and some rain lingering in the West with heavy showers expected over western Scotland.
Travel organisation Abta said today will be the busiest day for those flying overseas. Over the weekend more than 420,000 are jetting off from Heathrow airport.
Around 245,000 will fly from Gatwick airport, with 147,000 leaving from Stansted and more than 72,000 from Luton.
Around 145,000 will leave over the weekend from Manchester airport, 21,000 from Leeds Bradford, approximately 37,500 from Newcastle, 11,750 from Southampton, 70,000 from Birmingham and 50,000 from Nottingham East Midlands.
In Scotland, 120,000 will be flying out from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen airports.
In addition, around 70,000 will use the Channel Tunnel high-speed train company Eurostar for trips to the continent, with the landmark 100 millionth passenger due to travel from London to Paris this morning.
A further 500,000 people will be heading abroad by ferry or on Eurotunnel services.
Top destinations for those getting away are Majorca and Ibiza, mainland Spain, Turkey, Portugal and the Greek islands.
Top city-break destinations are New York, Amsterdam, Dublin and Rome.
Abta chairman John McEwan said: "Many families see the Bank Holiday as their last-ditch attempt to get a holiday abroad to get some guaranteed sunshine. This is more true this year than ever.
"Obviously people have been holding on to their money until they are sure they have enough to go away with and, as a result, we have seen a surge in late bookings."
At home, the AA and the RAC warned that many roads would be packed over the Bank Holiday weekend. The Highways Agency has completed a number of roadworks and suspended work on some sites, but a number of roadworks remain in place, including some on the M25.
A survey by Total Assistance showed that 60% of Britons would be more likely to holiday in the UK than they were two years ago.
The survey also revealed that 29% of Bank Holiday trips made by Britons will be to visit family and friends.
Engineering work means that buses will replace trains on more than 1,000 miles of rail routes over the weekend.
But the Association of Train Operating Companies has said that 3,500 more trains are running than during the last August Bank Holiday and there are 15% fewer replacement bus services than last year.
Reader views (1)
Let's hope it pours down for the Carnival then!
- Eddie, London, 28/08/2009 09:06
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