The most frequented tourist spots in the United Kingdom.

In 2022, the British Museum in London experienced a significant increase in visitors, making it the most popular tourist destination in the UK.

According to Alva, a trade organization, the British Museum had 5.8 million visitors in 2023, which was a 42% increase from the previous year. The last time the British Museum was the most visited attraction was in 2019.

The popularity of last year was in part due to the success of the China’s Hidden Century exhibition, which took place from May to October.

According to Alva’s Director, Bernard Donoghue, popular destinations in the UK saw a significant increase in visits following the lifting of coronavirus restrictions, with a total of 146.6 million visits in 2023. This represents a 19% rise compared to 2022.

Although he cautioned that they have not fully recovered, he stated that people had become unaccustomed to visiting museums and galleries while they were closed.

The amount of visitors to popular destinations remains lower than before the pandemic, having decreased by 11 percent from 163.9 million in the pre-Covid-19 year of 2019.

During an interview on the Independent Travel Podcast hosted by Simon Calder, Mr Donoghue discussed the slow and extended process for the travel industry to bounce back after being affected by lockdown.

“The current economic climate has led to a rise in the cost of living, resulting in a widespread financial strain. As a result, individuals are becoming more strategic and practical in their leisure spending habits.”

The current limitations on Chinese tourists entering the country due to COVID-19 measures have led to a decline in overall visitor numbers to popular UK tourism destinations. The head of the tourism industry remains optimistic that by the end of 2025, we will see a return to pre-pandemic levels of Chinese visitors.

The Natural History Museum in west London was the second most popular attraction, after the British Museum, receiving 5.7 million visitors in its most successful year.

Windsor Great Park in Berkshire came in third, with a total of 5.5 million visitors.

Edinburgh’s National Museum of Scotland saw the highest number of visits (2.2 million) among all attractions in Scotland, while St Fagans National Museum of History in Cardiff was the top spot in Wales with 600,000 visits.

The attraction Titanic Belfast received the highest number of visitors in Northern Ireland, attracting 800,000 people.

Visitors to indoor attractions increased by 23%, while outdoor attractions saw a smaller increase of only 2%.

In the year of the Coronation, the number of visitors to Westminster Abbey increased by 49 percent to a total of 1.5 million.

According to Mr. Donoghue, the government’s decision to end tax-free shopping for inbound visitors in 2020 has resulted in a notable decrease in spending at attraction gift shops by overseas tourists.

According to him, we are not taking advantage of the opportunity to sell pricey products to visitors from various countries, especially America, the Middle East, and the Far East.

“We are aware that we are falling behind other cities such as Paris, Milan, Madrid, and Rome.”

Additional information provided by various agencies.

“The source of this information is independent.co.uk.”