British holidaymakers have continued to jet off on long-haul flights in spite of the outbreak of swine flu, according to the travel operator TUI, which has seen bookings for long-haul holidays from the UK tick up 2 per cent in the past two weeks, compared with the same period last year.

Customers’ uneasiness over travelling to Mexico has benefited other long-haul destinations in the region, and bookings to Jamaica are up 30 per cent in the last two weeks, while the Dominican Republic has seen bookings surge by 19 per cent.