Spain, Italy and France were top holiday destinations for EU residents in 2011. - According to the latest data published by Eurostat, Spain, Italy and France were the preferred holiday destinations of European tourists in 2011. Eurostat only counted the tourist trips in the EU by EU residents and did not include trips by non-EU residents. Last year, EU residents made a billion holiday trips - of which around a quarter were trips outside their country of residence. Spain was the top foreign destination (13% of all trips abroad), followed by Italy and France (9% each). Among the member states, the largest number of holiday trips abroad in 2011 was recorded by residents of Germany (73 million, in other words 34% of all holiday trips made), by residents of the United Kingdom (44 million, in other words 38%), and by residents the Netherlands (16 million, in other words 52%). Together, these four member states represented almost two thirds of all holiday trips abroad by EU residents. In the majority of member states, most holiday trips were made within the same country of residence. In Luxembourg, on the other hand, almost 100% of the trips were made outside their national territory. In Belgium, the percentage was 74%, in Slovenia 56%, in the Netherlands 52% and in Austria 50%. In all the member states, the top destination for holiday trips abroad was a neighbouring country or a nearby country - except for the residents of Romania (where Italy was the main destination), for the residents of Sweden (who favoured Greece) and for the residents of the United Kingdom (who preferred Spain). Among the top three holiday destinations abroad, Spain was the preferred holiday destination for residents of Portugal (39% of trips abroad), United Kingdom (21%), and France (18%), while France was the top destination for residents of Belgium (33%), Luxembourg (23%), Spain and Italy (16% each). Italy was the preferred destination for residents of Malta (32%), Austria (22%), and Romania (20%). Germany was the favourite destination for residents of the Netherlands (18%), Poland (15%) and Denmark (14%). (IL/transl.fl)