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"What is the ultimate vacation destination around the world? There's no contest: the beach.\nAnd its popularity is on the rise. In a survey released Monday, 56% of worldwide respondents said they had taken a beach vacation in the past year, and 75% said they will likely take a beach vacation in the next year. That's up from last year, when 46% said they had taken a beach vacation, and 64% said they were likely to in the next year.\nSee also: 10 Crazy Vacation Ideas for Thrillseekers\n\"The beach is the world's most popular travel destination by a considerable margin,\" said John Morrey, vice-president and general manager of Expedia.com, which published the survey results in its annual Flip Flop Report. \"So every year we ask travelers all over the world to tell us their likes and dislikes as they relate to beach behavior.\"\nThe beach outranks historical sightseeing, visiting friends and family, theme parks, skiing, adventure sports and spectator events as the ideal vacation activity, according to the survey.\nExpedia also asked about worldwide opinions on beachwear.\nGermans and Austrians are the most likely to spend the day at the beach in their birthday suits, with 28% of the countries' respondents reporting they had done so in the past year. Least likely to take part in some nude sunbathing were the Japanese (2%), South Koreans (3%) and Thai (4%). The global average for beach nudity was 12%.\nThe numbers on toplessness were similar; female respondents in Austria, Spain and Germany were most likely to take part.\nThough unlikely to participate, 72% of respondents in Japan were \"very\" or \"somewhat\" comfortable with beach nudity. Only respondents in Spain were more comfortable, at 74%.\nApproval of speedo-style swimwear for men is high. The most welcoming were Brazilians (95%), Austrians (94%), Germans (91%) and Spaniards (91%). Less accepting were the Japanese (60%), Americans (57%) and Norwegians (40%).\n\nBeyond beachwear, the annual survey also looks at global thoughts on safety, including the perceived threat of sharks.\nAlthough 50% of beachgoers reported being anxious about sharks in the water, 35% of them said it wasn't enough to keep them from swimming.\n\nImage: Mashable,  Bob Al-GreeneStatistically, there is a much greater chance that a beachgoer would be injured or killed by drowning than by a shark attack.\nThis year's survey was conducted by market-research company Northstar on behalf of Expedia.\nHave something to add to this story? Share it in the comments."^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://mashable.com/2014/07/15/beach-top-vacation-destination/>