PostcardsSocial media and smartphones are being blamed for the decline in the number of postcards sent by holidaymakers.

Just one in six Britons send a postcard while on their travels, according to online market research company One Poll.

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The research, based on a poll of 2,000 adults, found that 45% of people have never sent a postcard while on holiday and 46% still use text, Facebook and email while abroad.

New research from O2 Travel also reveals that the tradition of sending a postcard while on holiday is fading, with only 16% of UK holidaymakers sending a card while away.

The decline is set to continue with more than half of those aged under 24 having never sent a postcard, according to the study.

More than 60% of people use text messages to keep those at home updated, while 39% phone home, 34% use Facebook and 29% plump for email, an O2 spokesman said.

More than a third of holidaymakers said they preferred not to send postcards because they felt it was too slow and 36% said finding a stamp or post box was too difficult, according to the survey.

One in 10 people worried about the postman reading what they had written, the spokesman said.

Sally Cowdry, marketing and consumer director at O2, said: "Smartphones allow holidaymakers the opportunity to take their social lives with them with the ability to keep up to date and instantly send personalised pictures and messages to friends and family."