Tourism

APPG Inquiry into Coasts and Waters enters second phase

05-Aug-2020 By James McAllister

The second phase of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Hospitality and Tourism’s (APPG) 'coasts and waters' inquiry has opened.

Renewed calls to relax two-metre rule and introduce Autumn bank holiday in APPG report

12-Jun-2020 By James McAllister

Just 11% of hospitality businesses have been able to operate normally during the Coronavirus lockdown according to a report from The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Hospitality and Tourism (APPG).

united we stand

Scottish Government called on to implement one metre distancing rule to save tourism industry

04-Jun-2020 By Restaurant

The Scottish Government has been called on to halve the social distancing parameter for distancing from two metres to one metre and to give the industry a clearer timescale to work towards in order save the majority of the country’s tourism businesses.

Tory MPs call on Chancellor to deliver further support for hospitality

04-May-2020 By James McAllister

A group of 85 Conservative MPs have written to the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, calling for a specific support package for the hospitality and tourism sectors.

Edinburgh Council backs controversial 'tourist tax'

08-Feb-2019 By Sophie Witts

Edinburgh has moved closer to becoming the first city in the UK to introduce a controversial ‘tourist tax’ on hotel stays.

Edinburgh's proposed tourist tax divides city's hospitality sector

22-Nov-2018 By Sophie Witts

A consultation in to introducing a controversial tourism tax in Edinburgh has divided hospitality businesses in the city.

UK has seen no post-Brexit tourism surge, says BHA

28-Nov-2016 By Sophie Witts

The number of leisure tourists visiting the UK dropped by almost 400,000 in the first nine months of 2016, according to the British Hospitality Association's (BHA) Travel Monitor report.

Birmingham named top UK city for business tourism

24-Nov-2016 By Sophie Witts

Birmingham has been named as the UK’s top destination for business tourism outside of London.

American tourists to spend extra £1bn in UK post-Brexit

08-Nov-2016 By Sophie Witts

The weakened pound could see US tourists spend an extra £1bn in the UK next year, according to new research.

Final recipients of first round Discover England funding revealed

20-Oct-2016 By Emma Eversham

Projects designed to boost tourism on the East Coast and help international visitors explore the English countryside by electric car are among the final recipients of the government's £40m Discover England Fund.

VizEat, the Airbnb for food, to expand in the UK

06-Sep-2016 By Emma Eversham

VizEat, the European food platform designed to give travellers access to meals and food experiences provided by locals, is set to grow in the UK after receiving an extra £31m in investment.  

Hospitality benefits from £40m fund as Government pledges to boost UK tourism

30-Aug-2016 By Emma Eversham

Seafood restaurants on the South Devon coastline, hotels and restaurants along the South West coast and golf resorts are some of the tourism businesses set to benefit from a share of the Government's first £40m Discover England Fund.

Hotels expect record-breaking summer season post-Brexit

02-Aug-2016 By Sophie Witts

Business confidence among English hotels and accommodation providers is at a record high for the summer holidays following the Brexit vote.

Birmingham named UK's fastest growing tourist destination

27-May-2016 By Sophie Witts

Birmingham saw the largest increase in international visits outside London last year, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

TRAVEL AND TOURISM

China moves into UK's 10 most valuable inbound markets

23-May-2016 By Emma Eversham

China has moved into the UK's top 10 most valuable inbound markets as new figures for 2015 show visits from the market rose 46 per cent to 270,000 and spend rose 18 per cent to £586m. 

English tourism businesses offered slice of Discover England Fund

11-May-2016 By Emma Eversham

Tourism businesses and organisations in England are being invited to apply for funding for projects that would help make the country more appealing to international visitors and staycationers. 

Tourist visits to the UK reach all-time high

22-Apr-2016 By Sophie Witts

Britain could be set for another bumper year of tourism after visitor numbers in February broke all previous records.

More tourists are visiting the UK but spending less

19-Feb-2016 By Michelle Perrett

A new record for inbound tourism to the UK was hit in 2015 with 35.8m visits, the sixth consecutive year of growth. 

Chinese tourists could spend £1bn a year in the UK by 2020

23-Nov-2015 By Sophie Witts

Britain’s tourism industry has welcomed a record number of international visitors this year driven by a surge of interest from the Chinese market.

Budget brands to lift London hotel boom until 2018

18-Nov-2015 By Sophie Witts

A boom in budget and five star brands is expected to see the number of hotel rooms in London grow 12 per cent by 2018, according to new research from London & Partners and AM:PM.

VisitBritain: Social media is a ‘global influence’ on holiday choices

11-Nov-2015 By Liam Garrahan

Research by VisitBritain shows that social media has a ‘powerful influence’ in international tourists choosing Britain as a holiday destination.

Government relaxes Chinese visa rules in bid to attract wealthy tourists

22-Oct-2015 By Sophie Witts

David Cameron is hoping to encourage wealthy Chinese tourists to visit the UK with the introduction of a two year multiple entry visa.

Visits to Scotland increase by more than 10%

14-Oct-2015 By Liam Garrahan

International visits to Scotland have increased by 12 per cent in the last year while visits to Wales, England and London have also increased, according to tourism body VisitBritain.

Political support builds for Cut Tourism VAT campaign

22-Sep-2015 By Emma Eversham

Political support for Cut Tourism VAT's campaign to reduce VAT on domestic tourism from 20 per cent to 5 per cent is growing with The Liberal Democrats becoming the first main party to back it. 

Taste for Tourism aims to brand Scotland as a food destination

04-Aug-2015 By Liam Garrahan

A new event in Scotland called Taste for Tourism is aiming to brand the country as a global food destination.

David Cameron announces five point plan to boost regional tourism

17-Jul-2015 By Sophie Witts

The Prime Minister will today (17 July) announce a new five point plan designed to boost tourism across the UK.

Top 10 emerging UK destinations

14-Jul-2015 By Liam Garrahan

In our latest image gallery we take a look at the ‘emerging’ UK cities, those which have seen the biggest increase in foreign visitors since 2012. 

London businesses to benefit from £13bn tourist spending

04-Jun-2015 By Sophie Witts

London businesses are set to be benefit from another record year for tourism with visitor spending set to rise to £13bn in 2015, according to the Mastercard Global Destinations Cities Index.

London businesses boosted by record-breaking year of tourism

20-May-2015 By Noli Dinkovski

London received a record-breaking number of international tourists in 2014, according to official figures.

Ministerial appointments welcomed by hospitality trade bodies

14-May-2015 By Noli Dinkovski

Trade bodies have welcomed the appointments of the two ministers given responsibility for tourism under the new Government.

VisitEngland 2015 Awards for Excellence winners announced

12-May-2015 By Sophie Witts

Hospitality and tourism businesses were honored at the 2015 VisitEngland Awards for Excellence last night (11 May).

‘Staycation’ trend gives hospitality businesses a boost

24-Apr-2015 By Sophie Witts

UK hospitality businesses are predicted to see a boost in profits this summer due to an increasing number of Britons opting for ‘staycations’, according to new research from VoucherCodes.co.uk.

Election 2015: Where do the parties stand on cutting tourism VAT?

24-Apr-2015 By Sophie Witts

Labour and the Conservatives have been accused of neglecting the travel industry following a review of the party manifestos by the Cut Tourism VAT campaign.

VisitEngland asks industry for views on tourism growth strategy

18-Mar-2015 By Emma Eversham

VisitEngland is asking for views on the growth strategy it has in place for England's tourism industry over the next five years.

Another record year for UK tourism

12-Feb-2015 By Carina Perkins

2014 was another record breaking year for UK tourism, with both spend and visits reaching their highest levels to date.

UK regions feel benefit of overseas visitor growth

22-Jan-2015 By Carina Perkins

UK regions saw faster growth in overseas visits than London last year, although the capital enjoyed the biggest uplift in tourism spend, according to new analysis from VisitBritain.

Political parties urged to support hospitality in election year

06-Jan-2015 By Emma Eversham

Political parties are being urged to support the hospitality industry during the election year and recognize the important role it plays in the economy.

2015 to be record year for UK tourism and hospitality

05-Jan-2015 By Emma Eversham

The forthcoming year is expected to be a record one for the UK’s tourism and hospitality industries with spend from overseas visitors forecast to reach £22 billion for the first time. 

BHA appoints Merlin CEO as chairman

11-Nov-2014 By Melodie Michel

Nick Varney, chief executive of Merlin Entertainments will be taking over from Alan Parker CBE as chairman of the British Hospitality Association (BHA) on 1 January 2015.

Tourism spend rise on track despite fewer August visits

09-Oct-2014 By Melodie Michel

VisitBritain is on track to deliver its 2015 target of £2bn extra visitor spend, despite a slight 1 per cent increase year to date.

Tourism employment grows twice as fast as rest of market

26-Sep-2014 By Melodie Michel

Employment grew twice as fast in the tourism industry as in other UK sectors between 2009 and 2013, according to figures released Friday (26 September) by the Office of National Statistics (ONS).

UK to refund the cost of 25,000 Chinese visas

12-Sep-2014 By Carina Perkins

Chancellor George Osborne has revealed plans to refund the cost of thousands of Chinese visas to boost inbound tourism and strengthen relations between the UK and China.

Inbound visits reach another record

11-Sep-2014 By Melodie Michel

The first seven months of 2014 saw 7 per cent more visits to the UK from overseas residents than in the same period the year before, according to the latest inbound tourism report from the Office of National Statistics (ONS).

Britain's culture and heritage still major tourist draw

09-Sep-2014 By Carina Perkins

Britain’s culture and heritage is a key driver for inbound tourism, with food and drink an important part of the cultural package, according to a new report.

BHA partners with European tourism association

22-Aug-2014 By Melodie Michel

The British Hospitality Association (BHA) has partnered with the European tourism association (ETOA) to promote the merits of UK tourism to international visitors.

Scotland’s first luxury ‘boatique’ hotel to open

12-Aug-2014 By Lauren Houghton

The Royal Yacht Britannia has acquired heritage vessel MV Windsor Castle, and intends to convert the ship into a luxury hotel. 

UK visits continue to climb as London remains top destination

10-Jul-2014 By Melodie Michel

International visits to the UK were up 4 per cent in May (3.2m) compared to the same month last year, despite a decline in spend, the Office of National Statistics (ONS) has revealed.

Tourism VAT cut would boost economy, finds report

07-Jul-2014 By Carina Perkins

Cutting VAT on hotels and attractions would be a ‘win-win’ strategy for Britain – helping to stimulate the tourism industry, create additional jobs and generate a net gain for the Treasury, according to a new report. 

Holiday visits to the UK up 18% year to date

13-Jun-2014 By Lauren Houghton

A recent report from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that the trend for a rise in visits to the UK by oversees residents is continuing, while the number of visits abroad by UK residents has fallen slightly.

Regional tourism must build on London ‘strength’

09-Jun-2014 By Melodie Michel

Unlocking Britain’s regional tourism potential requires playing on London’s popularity and promoting the country’s transport system, according to research by Olive insight.