VISITBRITAIN reports that international visitor figures for January and February 2004 represent some of the best ever. Over 3.5m tourists came to the UK in the first two months of the year, a rise of 10% on the same period in 2003, according to provisional data from the International Passenger Survey. If visitors continue to flock to Britain at this rate, VisitBritain”s forecasts of a 3.3% increase in visits and a 3.4% rise in spending this year look achievable. BAA reports the strongest growth in passenger numbers from the long haul and North American routes, while Eurostar saw record numbers in the first three months of 2004, carrying just over 1.6m passengers through the Channel Tunnel, an increase of 19% on the same period last year. A stroll through some of the most popular parts of London”s West End just the other day did indicate that the whole area was busy with overseas tourists.
http://www.visitbritain.com