Tens of thousands of people are expected to flock to Brighton and Hove this bank holiday weekend.

The city has been named as the country's most popular resort for the weekend as people head to the beach to take in the last of the summer rays.

According to the AA Route planner Brighton and Hove is expected to welcome in excess of 40,000 visitors - proving more popular than coastal towns such as Blackpool and Bournemouth.

Council bosses say they are planning for 150,000 people to hit the seafront alone.

Forecasters have predicted better weather for the weekend with temperatures around 20C in the city.

A spokeswoman for the Met Office said: “For the most part it is going to be a nice weekend. On Saturday there will be sunny spells and partly cloudy with temperatures around 19C. It will be dry and bright and more of the same on Sunday.

“On Monday it is looking really nice – bright and dry with temperatures between 23C and 25C.”

Councillor David Smith, Brighton and Hove City Council's cabinet member for culture, recreation and tourism, said that the city is gearing up for the swarms of daytrippers.

He said: “We are expecting a bumper weekend in the city as people make the most of the last long weekend of the summer.

“With good weather forecast for the whole weekend, we are expecting around 150,000 to head to the seafront each day. Hotels in the city are busy but there are still some last minute bookings available.”

However motorists have been warned that there will be “unavoidable congestion” in the city over the weekend.

The council has suspended some roadworks in the Brighton and Hove to try to ease pressure on the roads.

Ship Street in Brighton will remain closed over the weekend but roadworks on A259 Marine Drive at Roedean café will be suspended but lane restrictions and a 30mph speed limit will remain. Southern Water will also suspend its works in North Road for the weekend.

Routes in and out of the city, particularly the A23 and M23, will be extremely busy at peak times.

A spokesman for the AA said: “Congestion is unavoidable so general advice is if at all possible travel at times that are away from peak times and if there are alternative routes then people should avoid major routes in and out of Brighton.

“Brighton is the most popular seaside destination for the bank holiday so people should expect localised traffic into Brighton and out of the city.”