Rio 'tops travel hotspot searches'

Rio de Janeiro was the most-searched holiday destination this year, according to Google.

The Brazilian city, which will host the final of the 2014 Fifa World Cup and the 2016 Summer Olympics, topped the list, with Brazil itself in third.

Greece was second, while Dubai (fourth) and Paris (fifth) were also in the top five.

Unsurprisingly London was the most-Googled UK city, finishing sixth in the travel hotspot table, but although "Olympics" seemed a sure bet for the top UK search term, it was actually beaten by "Euro 2012".

But the high popularity of London's summer showcase was reflected by the fact "Olympics tickets" came second in the annual zeitgeist report, which lists the most searched items of 2012.

Other travel destinations rounding off the top 10 were Bruges, Cornwall, Edinburgh and Barcelona.

Daniel Craig's latest exploits as the smooth-talking, pistol-wielding, Martini-drinking 007 were also reflected in Google searches as Skyfall was revealed as the top tending film of 2012.

Meanwhile, Whitney Houston, who died in February, was the most searched person during the year, closely followed by Kate Middleton.