In 2023, the United States was the leading inbound travel market for the United Kingdom based on the number of visits. That year, the UK reported approximately 5.12 million inbound trips from the U.S., surpassing the figures recorded in 2019 and 2022. In total, the number of inbound visits in the UK reach nearly 40 million in 2023.

The number of overseas tourist visits to London, United Kingdom continued to grow in 2023, following a sharp drop in 2021, due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Despite the significant annual increase, inbound arrivals in the UK's capital remained below pre-pandemic levels, reaching 20.28 million in 2023. That year, inbound tourist visits to the UK totaled nearly 40 million. London leading the way in Europe London’s contribution to inbound tourism in the United Kingdom is significant, with the UK’s capital accounting for over 50 percent of international tourist arrivals in the country in 2023. This was more than other leading European destinations, such as Amsterdam, Paris, and Berlin. Those visiting the UK capital also made a significant contribution to the local economy, with expenditure of international visitors in London peaking in 2023, with inbound tourists spending over 16 billion British pounds that year. However, this was not reflected in business travel spending in the city, which was nearly half a billion British pounds in 2023 than in 2019. London’s visitor attractions As the largest city in the UK, London is home to some of the country's most iconic visitor attractions. These range from government-sponsored museums, such as the British Museum, to the Tower of London and the ZSL London Zoo. In 2023, the British Museum was the most visited tourist attraction in London. Overall, most sites have struggled to match the visitation rates recorded before the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, however. For instance, attendance at the British Museum – the most visited free attraction in London in 2023 – declined by around seven percent from 2019.

In 2019, international travelers aged between 25 and 44 years old recorded the highest number of visits in London, United Kingdom (UK). Overall, tourists aged 25-34 and 35-44 accounted for 4.5 million and 4.4 million visits by overseas residents, respectively. In total, international tourist visits in London exceeded 21 million.

Inbound visits to London, United Kingdom, grew back in 2022, following a sharp drop due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. In 2022, trips for holiday purposes accounted for the highest number of overseas tourist visits to London. Vacation visits in the UK's capital, however, remained below pre-pandemic levels, totaling just above eight million in 2022.

In 2023, the number of overseas resident visits to the United Kingdom totaled 38 million, representing a growth of over 20 percent from the previous year. The figure was projected to reach 38.7 million in 2024. Has the UK’s tourism industry completely recovered from the coronavirus pandemic? Like in most countries, the travel restrictions put in place to stem the spread of the coronavirus wreaked havoc on the UK’s tourism industry. Overseas visitor numbers dropped to 7.1 million in 2021, representing a drop of over 80 percent from 2019. While the figure reported for 2023 showed a continued recovery in terms of overseas visitors to the UK, it remained below pre-pandemic levels. However, in terms of spending among the UK’s leading inbound travel markets, most overseas visitors spent more in 2023 than in 2019, with visitors from the UK’s leading inbound travel market, the United States, spending around 50 percent more during their travels than in 2019. What are the most visited cities in the UK? Unsurprisingly, London consistently ranked as the most visited town or city in the UK among international tourists in recent years, drawing in 20.27 million visitors in 2023. This was around tenfold the number of the second-most visited city, Edinburgh, which received 2.32 million visitors during the same year. As the UK’s capital city, London’s tourist attractions are as varied as the city itself; however, one particularly strong draw for inbound visitors is Royal Family-related tourism. This is evident with the top two most visited paid tourist attractions in England being based in London and either belonging to the Royal Family or being run by a Royal-affiliated charity. Meanwhile, among UK residents, London ranks as the second most popular destination for a summer staycation, with the South West ranking first.

This statistic presents the most visited areas of England by domestic tourists on day trips in 2019. According to the survey, the city of London was the most visited area by day visitors, accounting for approximately 55 million visits. This was followed by Manchester in the North West of England, with around 30 million visits.

The British Museum was the most visited free tourist attraction in London in 2023, welcoming roughly 5.8 million visitors. While attendance at the renowned institution increased significantly over the previous year, the number of visitors remained below the figure reported before the COVID-19 pandemic. This was also the case with many other leading attractions, with only the National History Museum and the Royal Museums Greenwich having higher attendance in 2023 compared to 2019, among the listed attractions. Has tourism in London recovered from the impact of COVID-19? In 2023, the number of overseas visits to London exceeded 20 million. While inbound tourist visits experienced a sharp annual increase, they did not fully recovery yet from the impact of COVID-19. That said, expenditure by international visitors in the UK’s capital had more than recovered in 2023, reaching an all-time high that year. London’s contribution to inbound tourism in the UK Both before and after the pandemic, London was by far the most visited city in the UK by international tourists. When looking at the contribution to inbound tourism of leading European travel destinations, the city’s prominent role in supporting inbound tourism in the UK stands out. In 2023, London alone accounted for over half of inbound tourist arrivals in the country.

The Tower of London was the most popular paid attraction in London in 2023, welcoming roughly 2.8 million visitors. Attendance at the renowned site grew significantly compared to the previous year, nearly catching up with the figure from 2019. Meanwhile, the Royal Botanical Gardens (Kew Gardens) was the second most visited paid attraction in 2023, with just under two million visitors. What is the most popular free tourist attraction in London? In 2023, the British Museum topped the ranking of the most visited free attractions in London, welcoming nearly six million visitors. While attendance at the British Museum did not fully recover from the impact of COVID-19, the number of visitors to the Natural History Museum in South Kensington, which came in second in 2023, exceeded pre-pandemic levels. Overall, nine of the ten most visited tourist attractions in London that year did not charge for admission tickets. How many tourists visit London every year? London plays a key role in supporting the travel and tourism sector in the United Kingdom. Both before and after the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, it was by far the city with the highest inbound tourism spending in the UK. In 2023, the number of international tourist visits to London surpassed 20 million, nearly catching up with the overseas tourist visits recorded in 2019.

Spending of international visitors in the United Kingdom's capital city, London, grew in 2023 over the previous year across the board, with holidaymakers alone spending over nine billion British pounds. Meanwhile, business tourists from overseas spent over three billion British pounds on their trips.

London was by far the city with the highest international tourism spending in the United Kingdom in 2023. That year, inbound travel expenditure in the UK's capital amounted to 16.7 million British pounds. Meanwhile, Edinburgh and Manchester ranked second and third, respectively. These ranking positions were matched in the list of cities in the UK with the highest number of international visits.

The direct contribution of travel and tourism to London's gross domestic product (GDP) was significantly lower in the first two years of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic compared to 2019. Due to the impact of the health crisis, these industries' direct contribution to GDP in the UK's capital amounted to 3.6 billion British pounds in 2021, dropping by nearly 74 percent from 2019. As forecast, this figure is expected to rebound to an estimated 10.9 billion British pounds in 2022, denoting a sharp annual increase but remaining below pre-pandemic levels.

The number of visits abroad from the United Kingdom grew in 2023 over the previous year, reaching close to 110 million trips. That year, the most common purpose for travelling abroad for UK residents was for holiday purposes, with over 55 million trips made for this reason.

This statistic displays the total spending by international tourists on travel to London, UK to visit friends or relatives between 2009 and 2019. This spending increased over this period, and it amounted to 2.76 billion British pounds in 2019.

The revenue is forecast to experience significant growth in all segments in 2029. As part of the positive trend, the revenue reaches the maximum value for all five different segments at the end of the comparison period. Particularly noteworthy is the segment Hotels, which has the highest value of 24.13 billion U.S. dollars. Find other insights concerning similar markets and segments, such as a comparison of revenue in Switzerland and a comparison of revenue in China. The Statista Market Insights cover a broad range of additional markets.

This statistic shows the total spending of visitors from overseas to the United Kingdom (UK) in 2019, by the UK member country visited. Approximately 24.8 billion British pounds was spent in England that year, compared to 515 million British pounds in Wales. Overall spending of international tourists in the UK amounted to approximately 28.45 billion British pounds.

London was by far the most visited city by international tourists in the United Kingdom in 2023. That year, inbound visits to the UK's capital totaled just over 20 million, staying roughly seven percent lower than in 2019, prior to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Edinburgh and Manchester followed in the ranking, reporting around 2.3 million and 1.7 million visits, respectively. Overall, the number of inbound visits to the UK reached 38 million in 2023 but remained below pre-pandemic levels. What is the leading tourist attraction in London? Tourists visit London for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is its attractions. In 2023, the British Museum was London’s most visited tourist attraction, drawing in approximately 5.8 million visitors. The Natural History Museum in South Kensington and the Tate Modern came next in the ranking, with about 5.7 and 4.7 million visitors, respectively. While attendance at many of London’s top tourist attractions saw a significant increase in 2023 compared to the previous year, attendance generally remained below pre-pandemic levels. What is the leading region for summer staycations in the UK? A 'staycation' typically refers to a holiday spent in one's home country rather than abroad. It can also refer to a holiday spent at home involving day trips to local attractions. The leading region for summer staycations in the UK, according to an April 2024 survey, was the South West. Meanwhile, 12 percent of respondents said that they intended to visit Scotland during their summer holiday while only three percent stated that they would like to visit Northern Ireland. London came second in the ranking.

The British Museum was the most visited tourist attraction in London in 2023, welcoming roughly 5.8 million visitors. The Natural History Museum in South Kensington and the Tate Modern followed in the ranking that year, with around 5.7 million and 4.7 million visits, respectively. Overall, while attendance at the leading tourist attractions in London increased significantly in 2023 over the previous year, in most cases it remained below the figures reported before the onset of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Museums in the UK The museum industry plays an important role in the United Kingdom’s cultural sector. Overall, museums and galleries accounted for approximately seven percent of the cultural sector's employment in the UK in 2023. That year, the number of museum enterprises in the United Kingdom experienced an annual increase, reaching nearly 800. London's contribution to tourism in the UK London is by far the most visited destination in the United Kingdom by international travelers, accounting for over half of all international tourist arrivals in the UK in 2022. That year, the UK's capital also ranked as the leading city tourism destination in Europe based on the number of bed nights, ahead of Paris and Istanbul.

The expenditure of international visitors in London, United Kingdom, rose in 2023 over the previous year, reaching 16.7 billion British pounds. Based on figures reaching back to 2009, this represented an all-time high. Despite this rise in inbound tourism spending, however, the number of overseas tourist visits to London in 2023 remained below the figures recorded between 2016 and 2019.

This statistic presents leading international tourist markets ranked by highest expenditure during visits to London in the United Kingdom (UK) in 2019. Visitors from the United States spent the most on visits to London in 2019, at a total of nearly 2.5 billion British pounds. Visitors from China and France were also in the top three countries.

Travelers aged 25 to 34 accounted for the highest number of overseas visits to the United Kingdom in 2022, with roughly 7.1 million visits. This figure remained below the number of inbound visits reported in 2019, prior to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Meanwhile, the UK recorded around 6.7 million overseas visits by travelers aged 35 to 44 in 2022.