Travel and tourism in the United Kingdom - Statistics & Facts
Travel and tourism plays an important role in the United Kingdom, having a significant impact on the economy each year. In 2016 the industry made a total contribution of approximately 217 billion British pounds to GDP in the UK, with continual growth over the previous five years.
Comprising of numerous subsectors, the tourism industry creates revenue in various ways, through accommodation, food and beverage services, transport, cultural attractions and other recreational activities. Travel agencies, tour operators and other reservation services alone have generated over 40 billion pounds a year since 2013.
Tourists from overseas are vital to the industry. According to the UK International Passenger Survey, spending by international visitors reached over 22 billion British pounds in 2015. The number of inbound visitors in recent years has slowly been increasing, with the majority visiting for leisure purposes. Leading international markets include the United States, France and Germany.
For UK residents traveling abroad, the most popular destinations include Spain, France and Italy. Although the majority of overseas trips are made for holiday and other leisure purposes, business travelers are likely to spend more than the average visitor, at over 800 British pounds per trip in 2015.
Domestic travel is also a large contributor to the industry, worth over 20 billion British pounds a year in spending. Over a third of domestic trips are taken for the purpose of visiting friends and relatives, while the largest proportion of trips are for domestic holidays.
Travel and tourism in the United Kingdom (UK) - Important statistics
- 1. Travel market overview
Travel and tourism's total contribution to GDP in the United Kingdom (UK) 2011-2027- Travel and tourism direct contribution to GDP in the UK 2014-2016, by visitor origin
- +Leading travel and leisure companies in the UK in 2015, by market value
- +Tourist industry employment in the United Kingdom (UK) 2009-2014
- +Tourist industry employment in the United Kingdom (UK) 2014, by sector
- +Leading source travel markets for the UK 2016, by spending
- +Leading UK cities for international tourism 2016, by visits
- 2. Inbound tourism
- +Inbound tourist visits to the United Kingdom (UK) 2002-2017
- +Number of overnight stays by inbound tourists in the UK 2004-2016
- +Average nights spent on visits to the United Kingdom (UK) 2003-2015
- +Inbound tourist visits to the United Kingdom (UK) 2016, by purpose of trip
- International tourism spending in the United Kingdom (UK) 2010-2027
- 3. Outbound tourism
- +Number of outbound visits from the United Kingdom (UK) 2007-2016
- +Leading travel destinations visited from the United Kingdom (UK) 2016
- +Number of nights spent on outbound trips from the UK 2011-2016
- +Outbound travel expenditure in the United Kingdom (UK) 2007-2016
- +Outbound travel spending in the UK 2016, by purpose of trip
- 4. Domestic tourism
- +Domestic overnight trips in Great Britain 2010-2016
- +Number of tourism day visits in Great Britain 2011-2015
- +Most visited English cities by domestic tourists in Great Britain 2013-2015
- +Domestic travel spending in Great Britain 2010-2015
- +Domestic tourism spending in Great Britain 2015, by purpose of trip
- +Domestic tourism spending in Great Britain 2015, by destination type
- 5. Accommodation
- +Turnover of accommodation businesses in the United Kingdom (UK) 2008-2015
- +Turnover of accommodation services in the United Kingdom (UK) 2015, by sector
- +Number of accommodation enterprises in the United Kingdom (UK) 2015, by type
- +Serviced accommodation in England 2016, by type
- +Bedroom occupancy rate in the UK 2011-2015, by accommodation type
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