Very few children would know where Conwy Castle is

According to the survey from rail website thetrainline.com, 85 per cent of British youngsters have been abroad by the age of 12, with 19 per cent going to North America and 9 per cent to Asia. It also found that, on average, a child visits seven foreign countries by the time they are 12.

The poll even suggested that it is likely that the same amount of children who have visited London have been to the French capital of Paris too (23 per cent).

Iain Hildreth, marketing director at thetrainline.com, said: “It’s amazing to think that British kids will have seen so many foreign places by the time they hit their teens.

“It is surprising, however, to see the gaps in their knowledge about their own country in this report. With so much to do and see in the UK there really is no excuse.”

Parents had little faith in their offspring’s knowledge too, as only 8 per cent of respondents expected their child to know where Hadrian’s Wall is and 7 per cent thought their child could say where Stonehenge was.