London is top global city for visitors
LONDON has fought off both New York and Paris to be crowned the world’s number one destination city, with an expected 20.1m inbound passengers visiting the capital this year, according to a survey out yesterday.
Foreign visitors to London are expected to pull in a record $25.6bn (£15.58bn) this financial year alone.
“London has yet again proved it is the epicentre of global trade and the best world city to do business with,” said Mayor of London Boris Johnson, commenting on the research from MasterCard.
London visitors also come from a more diverse range of places than tourists in peer cities, the research revealed. The top 40 origin cities for London collectively account for only 60 per cent of visitors, compared to over 80 per cent in rival destinations such as New York.
This makes London less prone to volatility from economic contraction and currency deprecation than other parts of the world, MasterCard economist Dr. Yuwa Hedrick-Wong told City A.M.
The results also demonstrate an opportunity for UK retailers to capitalise on London’s position as they seek to expand their businesses.
“Retailers often pay massive attention to locating themselves near customers. But our study shows that many customers are now travelling to the retailers — especially for prime shops in cities like London,” said Hedrick-Wong.
Showing retailers exactly where their most valuable customers will come from enables them to focus their business strategies, build their brands overseas and promote any London-based services in origin cities more selectively, he added.
“London’s high ranking is evidence that the UK remains an attractive place to do business and indicates that the capital’s economic health remains strong,” concluded Hedrick-Wong
TOP 10 DESTINATIONS | BY INTL VISITORS
1 London 20.1m
2 Paris 18.1m
3 Bangkok 11.5m
4 Singapore 11.4m
5 Hong Kong 10.9m
6 Madrid 10.1m
7 Istanbul 9.4m
8 Frankfurt 8.4m
9 Dubai 7.9m
10 Rome 7.9m