Silver surfers look for holidays

Older people in the UK are making use of fast broadband connections to search for and book holidays online, a new study suggests.

According to the website broadband-expert.co.uk, 'silver surfers' - the over-55s who have embraced the internet - are drawn to travel and tourism websites in particular.

Last week, 27 per cent of the visitors to internet travel sites were over 55 and experts predict that this age group could overtake the 35 to 45 group in the near future to become the demographic most viewing these sites.

"Broadband is now truly mass market with people from all demographics taking advantage of the increased availability and falling broadband prices," explained Yvan Bamping of the website.

"Silver surfers show a particular fondness for travel and news and media websites, with these categories ranking higher among silver surfers."

A recent study from Utell Hotels & Resorts found that 19 per cent of the over-55 demographic would use the internet to search for an independent hotel that they could stay at while on holiday.