� IN FOCUS l WTM LONDON Tourism Ireland to tackle Brexit challenge


Palaces to power ahead with new 2018 attractions


Historic Royal Palaces will highlight attractions opening at the Tower of London (pictured), Hampton Court Palace, Kensington Palace, Kew Palace and Hillsborough Castle. Imprisonment at the Tower opens at the Tower of London in spring 2018, exploring its history as one of the country’s most infamous prisons.


Also, a new Secrets of the Tower experience allows small groups to see sites including the Queens House, St Thomas More Crypt, Chapel Royal and cells of famous prisoners.


Hampton Court Palace will host colourful floral displays with Florimania (March 9-11), and life in the Tudor Kitchens will be recreated for visitors to view from May. An important anniversary in 2019 will mark 200 years since the birth of Queen Victoria at Kensington Palace, and her rooms will be recreated to explore her story.


The successful Diana: Her


Fashion Story exhibition will run at Kensington until autumn 2018. Kew Palace and the Royal


Kitchens reopen on March 29 and the Great Pagoda at Kew will be opened to visitors following a multimillion-pound restoration project


Hillsborough Castle in Northern


Ireland is being upgraded in time for next year’s summer opening in July 2018, with new visitor facilities in place by the following summer. Banqueting House in Whitehall has launched a daytime venue hire offer, which will allow clients to hold events on a Thursday, excluding school holidays. hrp.org.uk


24 TravelGBI | November 2017


Overseas visitor numbers to Ireland between January and August rose by 2.5% year-on-year to 6.7 million – a record for all main markets except Great Britain. Tourism Ireland said the


market from Britain had declined by more than 190,000 arrivals when compared to the same period in 2016. North America and other long-haul markets continue to perform well, with North America up 18% for the eight-month period to August; Australia and developing markets up 17%; and mainland Europe up 3%. The story is different in Northern Ireland, where significant increases in holidaymakers were recorded from Great Britain, up 23%. Niall Gibbons, Tourism


Ireland chief executive, said:


Tourism Ireland promotes its links with Star Wars locations at WTM London


“The decline in visitor numbers from Britain continues to be a real concern. “The fall in the value of sterling has made holidays and short breaks here more expensive for British visitors and, at the same time, made Britain more affordable for visitors


from many of our top markets.” Tourism Ireland launched an


extensive autumn campaign to promote late-season holidays and boost travel into the early part of 2018. tourismireland.com Stand UKI400


British tourism benefits from inbound boom


More than 20 exhibitors will join VisitBritain and UKinbound at ExCeL, as the British tourism trade builds on a record year. There were a record 19.2 million visits to the UK in the first half of 2017, up 9% year-on-year.


Inbound visitors spent a


record £10.8 billion between January and June, up 14% year- on-year. Growth was also strong in


the regions: the North West saw 1.5 million visits and the West Midlands had 1.1 million visits – both up 14% year-on-year. Visits to London rose 13%


to 10 million – a record first six months. Overseas visitor spending hit


a record in the capital, reaching £6.1 billion in the first six months of this year, up 16% year-on-year. International visits to Scotland


rose 14% to a record 1.3 million, with spending setting another


Stand UKI430 travelgbi.com VisitBritain at WTM London


record of £956 million, up 35% year-on-year. Brits are also taking more


staycations: from January to June, domestic overnight holidays in England rose 7% year-on-year to a record 20.4 million, with visitors spending £4.6 billion, up 17% and another record. Tourism minister John Glen said:


“Tourism makes a huge economic contribution to the UK and it is great news that towns and cities across the country are benefiting from this boom.


“Promoting the UK to the


world is a priority and the increase in visits from American and Chinese tourists shows that Britain remains a must-visit destination.” Patricia Yates, VisitBritain


director, added: “The growth was driven by strong visits from inbound markets including China and the US. “Overseas visits from China for the first six months of 2017 were up 47% on last year to a record 115,000, and spend was also at record levels at £231 million, up 54% year-on-year. “Visits from the US were up


31% in the first six months of the year to 1.9 million, with spend at a record £1.8 billion, up 28%.” Figures from ForwardKeys


show that flight bookings for international arrivals to the UK for October to December are up 7% year-on-year. visitbritain.org


UKI100


VisitEngland/HRP


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