随着时代的进步和生活方式的改变，英国人的度假习惯也在不断地变化着。

In the nineteenth century，railways were built from the big industrial cities like Leeds and Manchester to seaside towns like Blackpool and Scarborough.For the first time，ordinary working people could visit the seaside.They used to take day trips on Sundays and special days like Easter.Traditionally，people sat in deckchairs on the beach，swam in the sea，and ate fish and chips.Children could watch Punch and Judy puppet shows，build sandcastles and ride donkeys on the beach.

　　In the 1950s，the first package holidays were sold.Throughout the 60s and 70s，the British increasingly began to give up the traditional seaside holiday in favour of sunshine and warmer seas in countries like Spain and Greece.Caravan and camping holidays also became popular in the 60s and 70s as car ownership increased.

　　In the 1990s，budget airlines like EasyJet cut the cost of air tickets to many European destinations.Long­distance flights also came down in price，so holidays to destinations in Australia and Asia became affordable to ordinary families.A growing number of people began to book their own flights and accommodation and，as a result，the package holiday market decreased.

　　The holiday habits of the British are continuing to change.Increasing levels of wealth mean that，for many families，a second foreign holiday － often a winter skiing holiday － is possible.City breaks are also growing in popularity，and not only to nearby destinations － Las Vegas，Dubai and Cape Town are all favourites for long weekends.And independent travel is becoming more and more popular as the Internet allows holidaymakers to find the best deals online.

　　[阅读障碍词]

1．puppet　　　　　　　 n．木偶