The year 2015 was a record year for Indian visits into Britain according to the International Passenger Survey from the Office of National Statistics UK. The latest International Passenger Survey figures show visits from India in 2015 are up eight per cent, from 390,000 to 422,000, setting a new record. Indian visitors spent £433 million in Britain last year along with 9.2 million nights.
These 2015 figures mean that India retains its position as Britain’s No. 1 BRIC market in terms of visitor volume and among the 20 top source markets for Britain globally. Growing outbound travel trends fuelled by increased flight connectivity into regional Britain has helped India cement its’ position with growing visitor numbers over 2014.
Sumathi Ramanathan, Director Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, VisitBritain said, “India is the top BRIC market for Britain in terms of volume and the year-on-year robust visit figures ensure our way to achieve our 2020 target of 500,000 visits. Our focussed strategy for the India market featuring the Bollywood Britain campaign, combined with our trade engagement, targeted consumer engagements and tactical offers with tourism partners will be crucial for us to deliver our tourism targets in 2016-2017.”
In 2015, VisitBritain India launched their ‘Bollywood Britain – Shaandaar’ digital campaign, featuring Northern England, in association with top Indian Cinema productions and Turkish Airlines, carrying forward their Bollywood Britain showcase in India engaging the Indian travellers through their most loved films and its’ celebrities. Such campaigns throughout the year coupled with tactical fare follow up campaign help showcase Britain’s countryside and culture, increasing regional dispersion into Britain from India and resulting in record visitor figures year on year.
Overall, globally inbound visits to the UK were up five per cent on 2014 at 36.1 million, which is a new record. Business visits grew by seven per cent on 2014 to 8.9 million. Spending by business visitors reached £5.4 billion, a record and an increase of seven per cent.
