The survey, from Teletext Holidays, claimed people under the age of 30 turned their noses up at traditional Punch and Judy shows, donkey rides, and swimming in the sea.

As many as 60 per cent of those questioned felt visiting traditional beach resorts had become distinctly unfashionable, with a third of them rating cream teas as outdated.

Only 11 per cent of the 2,500 people surveyed still enjoyed fish and chips while away.

However, young people in Scarborough have disagreed with the results, believing the town to be an exception to the findings.

Chris McAfee, 16, is from Crossgates. He said: “I think Scarborough is pretty good, and it is a nice place to come for the day. It has good shops, and there is the beach and the sea so there is plenty to do, especially for young people. It is more lively than other sea side resorts.”

Dan Magson, 15, from Pickering, said: “I think Scarborough is good because you can get here quite easily and fairly cheaply. I would not say it is unfashionable as it has a lot of good shops, and I like the beach. There is not as much to do in the winter as there is in summer though.

Also from Pickering is 15-year-old Georgia Barnes. She said: “I love Scarborough. It is a lot of fun. There is loads to do if you want to be active or you can just lay out on the beach on a nice day. I would certainly come back to Scarborough if I moved out of the area. Also how can you say Scarborough is uncool when it has such a great beach festival.”

Cara Lakey is 18 and a student at Scarborough, although she originally comes from Leicester. She said: “I really like it here. You have got two different types of attractions on each of the bays. There are the arcades on the south, and the quieter beach on the North. I don’t think it is right to say is unfashionable.”

Peter Hudson, 19, another student, was brought up in Suffolk. He said: “I like it here, it is nice to be by the sea. I am not sure if I would come here on holiday though as I doubt I would chose a beach holiday in the UK. It is not because I think it is uncool though, it is just not my preference.”

Nick Taylor, Scarborough Urban Renaissance manager, said: “It is a bit of a pity that the people in the survey have said this about seaside resorts, especially considering what Scarborough has to offer. We have one of the best pop concerts every year with Beached, as well as some of the best clubs and bars in the North, and we have got some really great places to go and see. There are loads of adventure activities to take part in such as surfing, mountain biking at Dalby Forest, and the recent Thundercats competition was predominantly made up of young people.