The statistics come from the International Passenger Survey in which VisitBritain sponsored questions on a range of activities visitors may have undertaken during their stay. 

The French proved the top museum fans just ahead of American, Germans and Spanish tourists. Americans topped the list for art galleries with well over 500,000 visits.

Sandie Dawe, chief executive, VisitBritain said: “This survey showcases the international appeal of Britain’s culture and heritage – where else could you see Grand Masters next to cutting edge installations, a Spitfire hanging next to a Dali?

“We are fortunate in the authenticity of what we have to promote and the connections that our rich culture makes across the world.”

ETOA has drawn up recommendations for boosting inbound tourism in response to prime minster David Cameron’s speech last week in which he said he wanted to see the UK in the top five tourist destinations in the world (See previous blog here).

The organisation says tourism should have higher status in government, it also attacked cuts on VisitBritain’s promotional budget.

Executive director Tom Jenkins said: “VAT should not apply to exports. Tourism is an export but the creation of holidays in the UK for visitors from abroad is subject to VAT – that’s clearly disadvantageous to tourism exports.

“However, the creation of holidays for UK residents outside the EU is free of VAT – the VAT regime is insane because there is a massive tax incentive to holiday abroad. This urgently needs to be changed.”

Current Visas to the UK are charged at £68 with forms to be filled out in English, whereas it said we’d become more competitive if the UK joined the Schengen system. 

“Anyone buying a Schengen visa (at a cost of €60) gets 25 countries to visit. If we could accept that visa, then we could start to double our income from newer markets.”

 ‘Market profiles’ on the VisitBritain website have been written by staff who are natives of the countries featured.

Advice includes:

A smiling Japanese person is not necessarily happy – they tend to smile when angry, embarrassed, sad or disappointed.

Don’t be offended by Argentinean humour which may mildly attack your clothing or weight.

Avoid pointing at someone from Hong Kong as this is generally used only for animals, winking is also considered a rude gesture.

Do not be alarmed if South Africans announce that they were held up by robots – they mean traffic lights.

Avoid saying ‘thank you’ to a compliment by someone from China, instead, deny the compliment politely as this shows humility. 

The information can be found here.

VisitBritain says some of our key competitors for most welcoming countries include Canada, Italy and Spain. The UK is currently ranked 50th.

VisitBritain Chief Executive Officer Sandie Dawe MBE said: ”Overseas visitors spend more than £16 billion a year in Britain, contributing massively to our economy and supporting jobs across the country. So giving our foreign visitors a friendly welcome is absolutely vital to our economy.”

“Tourism presents a huge economic opportunity,” he said. “Not just bringing business to Britain but right across Britain driving new growth in the regions and helping to deliver the re-balancing of our national economy that is so desperately needed.”

Cameron added that a key part of the government’s strategy is to persuade Britons to spend more of their holiday budget in the UK.

“I want to see us in the top five destinations in the world,” Cameron continued. “But that means being much more competitive internationally. Take Chinese tourists, for example: we’re their 22nd most popular destination. But Germany is forecast to break into their top 10. Why can’t we?”

One of the most striking changes that could be put into place is putting Britain’s clocks forward one hour to align us with continental time. This move would give Britain lighter evenings and longer days, which many in the tourism industry are in favour of.

Chief executive officer Sandie Dawe of VisitBritain said: “We are delighted that the Prime Minister has declared so clearly that tourism is fundamental to the rebuilding and re-balancing of our economy.

“And we share his determination to use the coming decade to boost Britain’s international competitiveness in tourism and to take our industry to a whole new level.

“VisitBritain is already focusing on delivering on these ambitions to build the value of inbound tourism. Our activity contributes £1.1 billion to the economy and delivers £150 million directly to the Treasury each year in tax.”

The prestigious award is given to beaches that meet a list of 32 pieces of criteria including Environmental Education and Information, Water Quality, Environmental Management, Safety and Services. The award is given per season so it’s good news for the summer in the West Country this year and will surely reassure tourists considering visiting the region of its high quality.

One such beach that has received a blue flag is the beautiful Blackpool Sands in West Hams, it has a mediterranean feel and a beautiful wooded backdrop and a brilliant cafe, Venus Beach Cafe.

To view the list of beaches awarded click here.

If you fancy a last minute summer break in a holiday cottage, click here for the main site to view properties that are still available.

With a week near the end of August and into September, 13 Great Cliff in Dawlish might be a perfect retreat. A 2 bedroom 2nd floor apartment, sleeps 4. A very well equipped interior with 1 en-suite bedroom. Off-road parking, intercom and lift. Sweeping sea views in a central location. Level one minute walk from the village centre. Prices vary from £579 to £929 depending on the season. Check out the link here for more information.

This figure is generated, directly and indirectly, by tourists who visit sites related to the Monarchy. Popular such attractions are the Tower of London, The Palace and Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh.

Of the 30 million overseas visitors who came to Britain last year, 5.8 million visited a castle, 5 million an historic house and 6.4 million a religious monument such as a cathedral.

A poll of 25,000 potential foreign visitors to Britain revealed that visiting ”Royal locations”, ”castles” and ‘’stately homes” were among the top three activities that would-be tourists said they would like to do. Respondents were also asked to pick a postcard picture that they would send home to communicate that they were in Britain, the most popular was a double decker bus (24%) coming in second was a stone castle by the sea (20%) and third was a picture of Queen Elizabeth II.

VisitBritain chief executive Sandie Dawe said: ‘’This fascinating research shows Britain’s monarchic heritage draws foreign tourists to just about every corner of the country from Scotland to Cornwall. Her Majesty the Queen celebrates her Diamond Jubilee in 2012, a feat last accomplished back in 1897 by Queen Victoria. This report suggests that year she is going to generate a bonanza for British tourism.’’

The trade association said that the report ignores the real threats that are currently causing decline in visitor numbers. The report forecast that tourism revenue will increase by over 60% by 2010, but UKinbound believe that this is far too optimistic.

“We do not dispute the real potential for substantial growth in inbound tourism but this potential will pale into insignificance if there are no plans to increase capacity and to address urgently the real barriers to growth,” said UKinbound chief executive Mary Rance.

“With no plans to increase capacity at Heathrow or any other London airport and in the absence of a strategy to restore the competitiveness of the UK as a destination by addressing the barriers to growth, it is fantasy to suggest that such huge growth is attainable.”

The organisation said the UK is still experiencing a 3% decline so far in 2010 even with the benefit of a weak pound. It blamed APD and VAT and an overcomplicated visa system that puts travellers off visiting the UK as part of the problem that is restricting growth of tourists visiting the UK.

It forecasts that the total value of tourism to the UK is set to rise by more than 60% to £188 billion over the next decade and  predicts spending by overseas visitors will practically double from £16 billion now to £31 billion in 2020. Jobs supported by tourism over that period is predicted to rise from 2.63 million to 2.89 million.

However; the reports warns that Government intervention will be the ‘’key’’ to success because a range of market failures need to be tackled.

These include:

- Marketing co-ordination to help small and medium sized tourist businesses who otherwise couldn’t afford to do it themselves

- Rural firms who face higher costs of operating should be enabled to adopt new technology

- Districts across the UK that rely on tourism as a main source of jobs for low skilled and part time workers should also be supported.

Marcus Simmons, managing director from iknow-uk, the independent tourism directory, said: “Responding quickly and effectively is key. We can’t expect the business to just drop into our lap – companies in the sector need to be pulling together to ensure maximum impact, and to enable us to show the rest of the world just how great Britain is as a holiday destination.”

VisitBritainsaid City of Culture 2013 aims to build on the success of Liverpool’s year as European Capital of Culture 2008. It is regarded that this title and investment had significant social and economic benefits for the area and will help Derry-Londonderry in a similar manner.

VisitBritain chief executive Sandie Dawe said: “It’s a testament to the passion and hard work that the city has already invested to win against such tough competition.”

The city of Culture is decided every 4 years. It could hold events such as the Turner prize, the Brits and the BBC Sports Personality of the Year. Derry-Londonderry had a huge amount of support from musicians and celebrities in its bid to win the title. Snow Patrol gave their track ‘Just Say Yes’ to be the theme tune, and Seamus Heaney and Brian Friel also backed the bid.

The results show that in terms of number of overnight stays by foreign visitors:

- more Americans go to Bath than any other nationality

- the French have developed a taste for Bristol and Plymouth

- the French and Irish are level pegging in Cardiff and Swansea

- the French and the Americans are joint first place in Cambridge

- Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Newcastle attract more visitors from Ireland than anywhere else

- Americans love Stratford-Upon-Avon

- visitors from the US are also the biggest market for the city of York, but Australians are a close second.