The Christmas getaway is ramping up on Friday as Londoners escape the capital in droves to go on their festival holidays.
Friday is expected to be the UK’s busiest day on the roads for festive travel with an estimated 23.7 million journeys planned for the day.
The AA – which says that number is higher than any year since it started recording data in 2010 – says the M25 near Heathrow airport is among the likely congestion hotspots
Rail engineering work will lead to more pressure on the roads with several lines closed, affecting services to and from stations such as London Liverpool Street and London Paddington.
An estimated four million people in the UK are preparing to spend the Christmas and new year period overseas, according to travel trade organisation Abta.
Heathrow airport expects this will be its busiest December on record for passenger numbers, exceeding the previous high of 6.7 million in 2023.
We’ll keep you posted on all the major developments today and in the run up to Christmas…
Four million Britons to travel overseas for Christmas and New Year
12:13 , Sami Quadri
An estimated four million people in the UK are preparing to spend the Christmas and new year period overseas, according to a travel trade organisation.
Abta said Sunday will be the busiest day for departures between Friday and January 2, with Christmas Day the quietest.
It identified the most popular destinations for winter sun holidays as the Canary Islands, southern Spain, Portugal, Turkey and Dubai.
The ski resorts of France, Austria, Switzerland and Scandinavia lead the way for holidaymakers seeking snow, while the most popular city break destinations include Amsterdam, Budapest, Dublin, Paris, Prague and Vienna.
Heathrow airport expects this will be its busiest December on record for passenger numbers, exceeding the previous high of 6.7 million in 2023.
Around half a million departing passengers are expected at both Manchester and Stansted airports over the Christmas and new year period, with 400,000 at Luton, 200,000 at Birmingham and 175,000 at Bristol.