Hostelworld : GLOBAL TRAVEL DATA REVEALS THAT THE IRISH ARE THE MOST GLOBE-TROTTING NATION

• Research looked at 'bookings per head' by analysing the number of bookings to 170 countries since 2014 compared to the country's population
• People living in Ireland are the most travelled, followed by Australia and New Zealand, with England in fourth
• Spain received the most bookings since 2014, followed by Italy and the USA

People may joke that there's an Irish bar in every city, and it would seem with good reason. New global booking data from 170 countries reveals that the Irish and Australians are the most travelled nations in the world.

According to Hostelworld, the largest online hostel-booking platform sparking social travel experiences, which measured the number of bookings for overseas and staycation accommodation in more than 170 countries since 2014, people living in Ireland have travelled the most when factoring in the size of that country's population.

Australia and New Zealand are in second and third place, followed by England in fourth and Canada in fifth. People from the Netherlands, Switzerland, Scotland, Sweden and Denmark make up the remainder of the top 10 most travelled. (See Table 1 for top 20).

When looking at overall number of bookings and not factoring in the population size, people from the USA have made the most bookings for accommodation overseas since 2014 (due to its huge population), followed by England, Germany, Australia and Canada. (See Table 2 for top 20).

And whilst the naturally sociable Irish make the most bookings per capita, Australians are the most travelled globally. Irish bookers were most likely to stay home with Dublin, Galway, Cork and Belfast all making their top 10 bookings, whilst Australians would rather visit London, Amsterdam, Berlin and Barcelona.

European destinations also tend to receive the most bookings, making up seven of the top ten. Spain has welcomed the most visitors overall since 2014, followed by Italy, the USA, England,

and Germany. Australia, Thailand, Ireland, France and the Netherlands round out the Top

10. (See Table 3 for Top 20).

London was the most popular destination visited by the most travelled nations, coming top of the list in seven out of the top 10 countries. Meanwhile, those jetting off from England divided their adventures between Europe, Asia and Australia.

Marek Mossakowski, Global Head of Brand at Hostelworld, said: "Every day thousands of travellers from all over the world are booking their next adventure and it's always interesting to see which nationalities are the most intrepid. No matter how well travelled your nation, at Hostelworld we encourage everyone to get out there and meet the world."

Top 20 most travelled nations (weighted against population size)

1. Ireland

2. Australia

3. New Zealand

4. England

5. Canada

6. Netherlands

7. Switzerland

8. Scotland

9. Sweden

10. Denmark

11. Finland

12. Wales

13. German

14. Norway

15. Slovenia

16. North Ireland

17. Hong Kong

18. Belgium

19. France

20. Belgium

Top 20 most travelled nations (based on booking volume alone, not weighted against population size)

1. USA

2. England

3. Germany

4. Australia

5. Canada

6. France

7. Brazil

8. South Korea

9. Netherlands

10. Spain

11. Italy

12. Ireland

13. Argentina

14. Mexico

15. China

16. New Zealand

17. Switzerland

18. Sweden

19. India

20. Scotland

Top 20 countries that receive the most bookings (2014-2017)

1. Spain

2. Italy

3. USA

4. England

5. Germany

6. Australia

7. Thailand

8. Ireland

9. France

10. The Netherlands

11. Japan

12. Vietnam

13. Portugal

14. New Zealand

15. Czech Republic

16. Columbia

17. China

18. Croatia

19. Scotland

20. Peru

- ENDS -

For more information contact: Natalie Clark Medina, Third City

T: 020 3668 6911 | M: 0754 006 5888| E: natalie@thirdcity.co.uk

About Hostelworld

Hostelworld, the largest online hostel-booking platform sparking social experiences, inspires passionate travellers to see the world, meet new people and come back with extraordinary stories to tell. Hostelworld customers are not your average tourists; they crave unique experiences that Hostelworld facilitates with the best choice of hostels around the world. It's the social nature of hostels that turbo-charges their global adventures and empowers them to Meet the World.

Hostelworld has more than nine million reviews across 35,000 properties in more than 170 countries, making the brand the leading online hub for social travel. The website and mobile app operates in 19 different languages.

The Hostelworld Group went public in November 2015, listing on the main London and Dublin stock exchanges. Headquartered in Dublin, Hostelworld has offices around the world in London, Shanghai, Sydney, Seoul and Porto and was recently recognized as a Best Workplace for 2016 by the Great Places to Work Institute.