Activities that generate Britain’s biggest tourism spend revealed
Walking and hiking are the activities that contribute the biggest spend among international and domestic day and overnight tourists in Britain.
Long walks and hikes bring in £1.8bn and road or mountain biking generate £520 million in spend, compared to golf which generates £456 million.
The figures, released today by VisitEngland, VisitScotland and Visit Wales, reveal for the first time the value of tourism spend generated by a variety of leisure activities.
The research is designed to show which different activities motivate a stay in Britain.
"Trips motivated by activities such as walking and cycling generate a massive associated spend; as people are willing to travel around the country to take part in them and that is something businesses can tap into to drive growth; by offering new and exciting experiences," said James Berresford, chief executive VisitEngland.
The full list was as follows:
Long walks/hikes £1.8bn
Cycling or mountain biking contributes £520m
Golf £456m
Watersports £317m
Watching wildlife/bird watching £306m (domestic only)
Fishing £274m
Meanwhile, the research also showed the breakdown in spend of other motivators for visits to the UK.
Visitor attractions £3.8bn (domestic only)
Attending a live sporting event £3.2bn
Attending live music event/festival £3.1bn
Visiting historic buildings £2.2bn
Sightseeing (in a town or city) £2bn
Visiting museums/art galleries £1.9bn
Attending the theatre £1.8bn
Visiting parks/gardens £1.8bn
Visiting zoos/aquariums £1.4bn
Sightseeing (exploring the coast) £1.4bn
Sightseeing (exploring the countryside) £1.2bn
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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