Tourism to Britain Sees Upward Trend Despite Brexit

Tourism to the UK has been on an upward trend over the last year with forecasts for a 6.6 percent rise in spending by tourists against the previous year and arrivals rising in August to 4.1 million people, up by 7 percent.

UK tabloid Daily Express went as far this week as to claim that Brexit Britain was “in line for 26 billion pound boom”, noting that the country had evolved into one of the most popular worldwide tourist destinations in the last decade welcoming in 2019 a historically high number of visitors.

Over the last decade, inbound tourism to Britain has increased by 33 percent and spending by 58 percent, according to data released by VisitBritain, the UK’s tourist authority.

Meanwhile, flight pre-bookings made between December and May increased by 5 percent compared to the same period a year earlier with those made from China and South Asia up by 33 percent and 22 percent, respectively.

“The picture has never looked healthier for British tourism. It is one of the UK’s most valuable export industries and these results show our continued ability to attract international visitors in a fiercely competitive global market,” said Patricia Yates, VisitBritain director.

According to the data published by Daily Express, a record 39.7 million visitors – mainly from the US and China – are expected to visit the UK this year, set to leave behind an estimated 26.6 billion pounds.

At the same time, Lonely Planet ranked the UK second among its top destinations for 2020.

According to the report, Britain’s most popular attraction is Tate Modern in London, followed by the British Museum and National Gallery. Other popular landmarks include Canterbury Cathedral, Stonehenge, Whitby Abbey and Edinburgh Castle.

It should be reminded, that UK nationals can still travel visa-free to any EU country through to 31 December 2020 – Brexit deadline. According to officials, visa-free travel is likely to continue after Brexit for stays of up to 90 days.