GLORIOUS sunshine has sparked a boom in Weymouth's holiday trade - thanks to weather hotter than Benidorm, Majorca and Madrid.

Unseasonably warm weather lead to thousands of people flocking to the resort.

Weymouth and Portland promotions manager Steve Davies said: "It has been a sensational start to the season, probably one of the best starts that most of us can remember.

"The seafront, the beach and traders have been exceptionally busy, particularly over the Easter period.

"The Tourist Information Centre has been so rushed that it has been getting more than 1,000 calls a day from visitors and phone callers, which is phenomenal.

"People are being inspired to come by the weather. Everybody wants to make plans for their holidays - and who wants to go abroad when you have sunshine like this here?"

Car parks have been packed, the beach has needed extra cleaning, rubbish bins have had to be emptied more frequently and toilet attendants were brought in early.

Demand for deckchairs, sun traps and sun loungers was double this year compared to Easter 2006 with Weymouth deckchair sales matching a point the resort does not normally reach until May 31.

Tourism and cultural services manager Simon King said: "Overall it has been the best trading Easter the resort has seen in a decade.

"Our biggest competition for tourists actually comes from cheap overseas deals and when we have this kind of weather in England it highlights just how good holidays in the UK can be.

"It has been a fantastic start to the season and a real confidence boost for the local tourism industry."

Weymouth weatherman Bob Poots said conditions had been so fantastic that barely a third of an inch of rain had fallen on the town in the last 43 days.

He added: "We have had no measurable rain at all in April and our sunshine figures are well up."

The fine weather sent people barbecue crazy and they completely cleaned out Dennis Spurr's Fantastic Sausage Factory.

He said: "We sold more than 12,000 sausages in three days and people bought every burger, chop, fillet, chicken piece and beef joint we had.

"We have never seen anything like this before so early in the season. We were sold out and shut by 4pm on Sunday and people were still banging on our door trying to buy more."

Steve Middleton of Rossi's Ice Cream Parlour said they sold thousands of ices and had queues down the Esplanade.

He added: "The Bank Holiday weekend here was as good as a weekend in August and we have sold much more this April than in recent years."

Mrs Pat Derrien and her grandchildren Teo, 6, Maddie, 3, and Devon, 2, from Dorchester were among those building sandcastles in sweltering conditions on the beach.

She said: "It is the perfect place to bring them. We were going to take them to a zoo today but we couldn't better Weymouth beach."

Ideal conditions brought out crowds of leisure and pleasure seekers and Weymouth Harbourmaster Captain David Stabler said they were hoping for a bumper summer season.

He added: "It has been a very good start and it bodes well for the season.

"At this time of year when you normally get a few gales and storms it has been very pleasant and this has encouraged boat owners to come out earlier.

"People are checking their engines and sails earlier than usual and we are hoping for a bumper summer particularly after weeks of sunshine like this because it will encourage people to make more use of their craft during the shoulder months."

Weathernet senior meteorologist Richard Wild said conditions for Dorset would be cooler this week while remaining dry with a good deal of sunshine which would ensure temperatures remained several degrees above average for this time of year.