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Last Updated: Sep 14th, 2008 - 22:35:57 |
As if Italy's ceaseless appeal needed any further illustration, the boot-shaped nation has topped the league of European countries that the international traveller would most like to visit, according to a new survey.
The poll of 20,000 travellers from 167 countries, conducted by the Lonely Planet travel guide, revealed that Italy is also the favourite European destination for travellers who have already been to the home of pasta and fine wines.
On a global scale, Italy ranked fifth as a future destination, behind Australia, Chile, Brazil and New Zealand in first to fourth place respectively.
But as a destination previously visited, Italy came in second after Australia, followed by Thailand, New Zealand and France.
Amongst British travellers, Australia, Brazil, Chile, New Zealand and India were cited most as countries tourists wanted to visit next.
And although the survey was conducted before Boxing Day's tsunami disaster, the popularity of countries such as India and Thailand suggests that tourists will soon be returning to the affected regions.
A massive 95 per cent of respondents said they were more interested in exploring new cultures than relaxing on holiday, and two-thirds said independent travel enhanced their respect for other cultures.
The survey also revealed that nine out of ten travellers always researched the web for travel information before going abroad.
Lonely Planet's Tom Hall told The Times: "The feedback from our traveller community is a great indicator of upcoming travel trends.
"They are curious, receptive and independent, thinking for themselves and travelling responsibly.
"They are the first to pick new destinations and fully embrace new technologies such as booking travel online."
Many airlines have flights to Italy. Click here to search for cheap flights to Italy
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