Edinburgh is the second most visited city, known for its low crime rate and rich heritage it is understandable that Edinburgh is so popular. Where in the UK can you make the most and spend the least? This creates 20,000 jobs. Students generate £1.2 billion in export earnings for the United Kingdom every year. Business visits accounted for 22% of all visits in 2018 and contributed to a spend of around £4.5 billion. Lying on a hot volcanic rock? our site. Tourists from the United States have contributed the most to the UK’s travel market, both by the number of visitors and amount spent while visiting. Holidays is the number one reason as to why tourists visit the UK, 63% of visits to the UK are for a holiday away. You are about to post a question on finder.com: Level 2, 20 St Thomas St, Overseas visitors to the UK reached 7 million in 2018, a 4.4% increase from 2017. This was particularly high in the South West and Scotland (41%). This article is more than 1 year old. finder.com is a financial comparison and information service, not a bank or Visits by European residents decreased by 5% (6.8 million visits) and visits from other countries decreased by 5%. Since 2010, tourism has been the fastest-growing sector for UK employment, accounting for 11.9% of all jobs and it is thought that by 2025, the industry is set to be worth over £257 billion. In 2017 the UK ranked seventh in the UNWTO international tourist arrivals league, behind France, Spain, USA, China, Italy and Mexico. London will always be one of the most popular cities in the world because it has something for everyone when they go on holiday, whether it is the vibrant culture, the west end theatre or classic British food. We produce reports monitoring visitor and attraction data, ad hoc monitoring and evaluation reports about City events and annual tourism impact reports. In 2019, the average UK resident was abroad for a total of 9.7 nights and spent £670 while there. Travellers from the US contribute most to the travel industry in the United Kingdom. This statistic shows growth in the total contribution of the travel and tourism industry to GDP in the United Kingdom (UK) from 2012 to 2018, with a forecast for 2028. Are you driving to do your Christmas shopping this year? Data Protection ICO registration number: Tourism in London statistics demonstrates the popularity of the capital in comparison to other locations in the UK as the city has 8 times more visitors than the second most visited city. 77% of inbound visits were repeat visits. It also provides many options to see the most beautiful panoramic views such as the London Eye and a variety of rooftop bars. The number of visits made by overseas visitors to Scotland rose by nearly 17% between 2005 (2.4 million) and 2016 (2.8 million).. Buy now pay later (BNPL) statistics | 2020, Mask usage in the UK and around the world, In 2020, the UK is predicted to receive around, The most international visitors to the UK in one year was, Last year, US visitors were the largest group to visit the UK with, International visitors described a potential trip to the UK as. A record-breaking £24.5 billion was spent by 2 million overseas visitors. Tourism Statistics. Find out the latest data here. The highest number of visitors to the UK in one year was 41.1 million in 2017, meaning the number of visitors was almost two-thirds of the whole population of the UK. product or commit to any plan. Coronavirus travel guide: Everything you need to know. £22.5 billion was spent by overseas travellers in the UK in 2016. Tourists over the age of 65 are more likely to do unusual activities such as playing golf or researching ancestry. The statistics on UK residents travelling abroad are an informal indicator of living standards. The UK accounted for 3.7% of international tourism receipts in 2017. Leisure and tourism Visits and visitors to the UK, the reasons for visiting and the amount of money they spent here. Visits to the UK for holidays reached a new record in June 2019 with 1.6 million inbound holiday visits (up 18%). The sizes of the names below represent how many visits each attraction had in 2019, with the British Museum being the most popular attraction (6.2 million visitors). Visitors Figures; Number of visits: 21 million: Total visitor spend: £2,104 million: From the 1,000 years of history of the Tower of London to the unique Giant’s Causeway clifftop experience in Northern Ireland, UKtourism offers enduring memories and experiences for both domestic and inbound visitors. While compensation arrangements may affect the order, position or placement of product information, it doesn't influence our assessment of those products. GB Tourism Survey (GBTS); GB Day Visits Survey (GBDVS); England / UK Occupancy Survey; Annual Survey of Visits to Visitor Attractions; This means that when we release monthly and annual survey reports, we're required to follow the Code of Practice for Official Statistics (2009), as produced by the UK Statistics Authority (UKSA). Two million jobs are created by the UK travel industry. Your return date must be after your departure date. Please note that any person or vehicle travelling for business or commercial venture, carrying commercial goods/samples will need to book via our freight teams and do not qualify for leisure fares. USA residents visit the most as 3,877,000 people visited in 2018, closely followed by France. The United Kingdom is rich in cultural heritage; it offers landscapes of outstanding natural beauty as well as vibrant city life and urban attractions. With almost half (47%) of all respondents saying they associate the UK with museums and with museums also being the most popular type of attraction in London, it’s likely that international visitors would treat a visit to the UK as an educational trip. 9% of the UK’s GDP is generated by tourism. 9% of the UK’s GDP is generated by tourism. The tourism sector is set to grow at an annual rate of 3.8% through to 2025. Sightseeing is the most common activity, with 16% of those only in the UK for a day doing some form of sightseeing. Tourists from the USA were the biggest spenders when visiting the UK, forking out £4.2 billion. In 2017 the UK was in fifth place in the international tourism earnings league (on par with 2016) behind USA, Spain, France and Thailand … There were 37.9 million visits to the UK in 2018. The third-largest number of visitors is 3.3 million from Germany. Inbound tourism forecast for 2021 predicts first signs of slow recovery Our 2021 forecast shows a gradual increase in the value of inbound tourism during January to March 2021 with a step-change heading into Easter and the spring, if national restrictions are eased. Inbound tourism statistics show 2017 was a record-breaking year, there was a 9% increase in spend and a 4% increase in visits from the previous year. History and heritage also draw in a lot of tourists, alongside ‘Britain only’ activities such as iconic landmarks and famous attractions. By 2025, the tourism industry in the United Kingdom is set to be worth over £257 billion. US$31.93 billion was spent in the UK by foreign tourists in 2017. There was a growth in spending across Wales (2%), North East (5%), Yorkshire (2%) and East Midlands (22%). Business visits increased to 24% in June 2019 (800,000). Overall, there has been a 69% increase in visitors to the UK, from 24.2 million in 2002 to 40.9 million in 2019. By continuing to use our site, you are agreeing to the use of cookies as set in our Cookie Policy. Georgia-Rose is a publisher at Finder.com and specialises in all things shopping and travel. This 14.5% growth brings the total expenditure by tourists in the UK to £149.5bn, making tourism one of the UK s largest and most successful industries. Data on inbound, domestic and outbound tourism is available, as well as on tourism industries, employment and complementary indicators. We are a credit broker and not a lender and Inbound tourism is set to grow from £21 billion in 2013 to £57 billion by 2025. World and regional statistics, national data, maps, rankings – World Data Atlas International tourism, number of arrivals World Tourism Organization, Yearbook of Tourism Statistics, Compendium of Tourism Statistics and data files. This is followed by 21% who are visiting friends and relatives, 20% business trips, 8% study and 1% other. According to the National Office for Statistics tourists spent more than 111 million nights and close to £11.9 billion. Planning a holiday but keen to read up on the specifics? Wildlife attractions had a 4% participation rate, increasing to 6% amongst those visiting the South West, London and Scotland. Travel and tourism overtook financial services (8.9%) and banking (3.4%) as the fastest growing sector in the UK. Online shopping fraud and scams increased by 37% in the first half of 2020. Over half of the visitor spend is spent within London which is not surprising as London is the third most visited city in the world after Bangkok and Paris. Chester Zoo. UK Tourism Statistics 2019 This new publication shows that the UK tourism industry has grown by £18.5bn since 2016. 88% of these students intend to come back to the UK for another holiday. Whereas, in the more rural parts of the UK, visiting the countryside, beaches, as well as national parks, are very popular amongst tourists. 476,356,100 nights were spent in tourist accommodation. A whopping 39.2 million people visited the UK in 2017, this is almost 66% of the UK population. Certain markets are more likely to make repeat visits to the UK: 92% of holiday visits from the Irish Republic, 92% from Norway, 83% from Iceland and 80% from Belgium were repeat visits in 2015. Tourism statistics. In 2018, 3.9 million American tourists visited the UK and spent a collective £3.4 billion. These three cities had an average of 1.2 million visitors each. 9.7 nights spent abroad by the average UK resident in 2019. 15.1 million of those visited for a holiday. The average spend per visit is £604 with an average length stay of 7 nights. Copyright © Condor Ferries ltd 2020. London tourism statistics show The Tate Modern is the number one tourist attraction in the city, with 5.9 million visitors in 2018. Please appreciate that there may be other options available to you than the products, providers or services covered by our service. With the top seven attractions in London being museums and galleries, it’s clear that visitors are keen to learn while in the UK’s most popular city. This is just over a quarter of the number of tourists from 2019. Maximum of 9 passengers allowed on the outward. VAT number: 259751759. The best museums and galleries in the world are located there, most of which are free. We may receive compensation from our partners for placement of their products or services. The UK has the most trips by EU citizens within their own country. Sources: ONS, VisitBritain, VisitBritain, Wikipedia, UKinbound. Get a discount on your next Airbnb booking with these tested and verified Airbnb discount codes and promos. 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