UK Tourism - Key Statistics

Tourism plays a significant part in the United Kingdom's ecomony, and as such is one of the

Spending by Overseas Residents	£ billion
Visits to the UK	14.2
Fares to UK carriers	2.8
Spending by Domestic Tourists	£ billion
Trips of 1+ nights	22.7
Day Trips	44.3
Rent for Second Ownership	0.9

largest industries in the UK, accounting for 3.5% of the economy, worth approximately £85 billion in 2005.

The UK is the world's 5th largest tourist destination, with 24.8 million tourists visiting in 2003. U£8.7 billion was spent by tourists in the UK.

Britain's tourist industry is mainly "cultural" and "heritage" based, with many tourists attracted to the country because of its rich and varied history.

Inbound Tourism to the UK:

Country	Visits (000)
USA	3,438
France	3,324
Germany	3,294
Irish Republic	2,806
Spain	1,786
Country	Spend (£m)
USA	2,384
Germany	998
Irish Republic	895
France	796
Spain	697

The 32.1 million overseas visitors who came in 2006 spent £15.4 billion in the UK.

2006 was a record year for UK inbound tourism both in terms of volume and value (in nominal terms), with the USA, France, Germany, Irish Republic and Spain responsible for over 12 million visits alone.

Total visits for 2006 are 32.1 million visits, a 7% increase compared with 2005, with an increase of 8% in spending to £15.4 billion.

In 2005 the UK ranked fifth in the international tourism earnings league behind the USA, Spain, France and Italy.

UK Domestic Tourism:

Expenditure in 2005 is estimated to be over £68 billion.

In 2005 UK residents took:

- 59.3 million holidays of one night or more spending £11.5 billion

- 22.5 million overnight business trips spending £5.3 billion

- 52.7 million overnight trips to friends and relatives spending £5.4 billion

Employment:

	Total (Millions)	Tourism Related (Millions)
Total employment	28.4	1.42
Employee jobs	24.6	1.29
Self-employment	3.6	0.13

Over 2 million jobs are sustained by tourism activity in the UK, either directly or indirectly.

There are an estimated 1.4 million jobs directly related to tourism activity in the UK, some 5% of all people in employment in the UK.

Approximately 130,400 of these jobs are in self-employment.

Labour Market Trends: April 2005

Accommodation:

In 2003, the turnover of the hotel industry was £10.9 billion. This represented an increase of 4% compared to 2002.

In 2005, average room occupancy for all serviced accommodation throughout the UK was 59% (down 2 percentage points from 2004). Average bedspace occupancy was 44% (a decrease of 1 percentage point on 2004).