Visits to the U.K. from the Gulf countries in the first quarter of 2019 were up by 9% year on year, according to the latest figures from tourism agency VisitBritain. Across the six Gulf countries combined, a record-breaking 177,000 visits were made to the U.K. between January and March.
Those visitors spent £382 million in the UK in the first three months of 2019 – up to six percent in the first quarter of 2018 spending levels.
The news follows the announcement of a new Tourism Sector Deal by the U.K. government, which aims to develop tourism recruitment and capacity, along with creating new tourism zones to encourage development and growth across the U.K.
VisitBritain APMEA director Tricia Warwick told that GCC is a significant market and a huge tourism opportunity for VisitBritain so she is delighted to see such a growth in visitor numbers and spend.
She said that it is fantastic that more people than ever are travelling to Britain and enjoying experiences that you cannot get anywhere else, including world-class shopping and personal shopping experiences, fine-dining in Michelin star restaurants and luxury sporting and heritage breaks.
VisitBritain is working in conjunction with trade partners including Wego and the Seera group across the GCC, as well as airlines such as British Airways and Etihad Airways, to continue to amplify the regions’ healthy growth.
Tags: Tourism, U.K tourism, VisitBritain
