Tourism bosses question Hunt’s China plan August 14, 2012 TOURISM industry leaders have been left unconvinced by government plans to treble to the number of Chinese visitors to the UK, saying yesterday there were still too many barriers to inbound travel that needed to be addressed. In a speech at the Tate Modern, culture secretary Jeremy Hunt set out how the government plans to [...]
Sun-seeking British passengers put a shine on EasyJet earnings July 25, 2012 EASYJET has raised its profit forecast for the year after seeing a rise in British tourists taking European holidays and a drop in fuel costs. Revenues in the quarter to the end of June rose 10.5 per cent to £1.03bn, and EasyJet now predicts full year pre-tax profit will rise to between £280m and £300m, [...]
Marrakech does luxury — if you know where to look December 2, 2012 MARRAKECH HAS always proved popular with holiday goers: the vibrancy of the markets, its rich cultural heritage, the array of traditional food on offer and its general mystique continues to draw people in. During the 1930s it became a hub for writers and creative folk and by the Seventies, everyone from Yves Saint Laurent to [...]
OVERSEAS BIG SPENDERS LURED TO EDINBURGH May 13, 2012 EDINBURGH enjoyed a surge in tourist spend over the past year, thanks to international shoppers flocking to the Scottish capital, particularly from China, Russia and Brazil. Tax-free shopping specialist Global Blue said tourist spending soared by 75 per cent in the twelve months to March, thanks in part to increased investment in the city centre.
Chinese luxury spenders keep UK tills ringing April 29, 2012 BRITAIN’S high street and luxury stores enjoyed record breaking tourist spend in the first quarter of the year driven by a surge in Chinese and south east Asian tourists (SEATs). Global Blue, the tax-free shopping services company, said spend from Chinese shoppers grew by 62 per cent in the three months to March, despite figures [...]
After the Muslim Brotherhood won Egypt’s presidency, should liberals be concerned? June 25, 2012 YES Samer Libdeh Although the Muslim Brotherhood stated that it will support and defend civil and minority rights, it remains to be seen whether this will happen in practice. The first test will come over the formation of a new government and whether Freedom and Justice, the Brotherhood’s party, will reach out to all sectors [...]
Japanese help to boost UK tourist trade March 18, 2012 JAPAN’S economic recovery has fuelled a resurgence in Japanese travellers to the UK, helping to boost overall tourist spend by 46 per cent last month compared with the same period last year. Japanese shoppers spent an average of £449 per store when shopping in the UK, with overall spend up by 35 per cent in [...]
Tourist tax rise scrapped and Learjet raid delayed March 23, 2011 THE chancellor scrapped a planned rise in air passenger duty yesterday, but admitted that legal difficulties have shelved a change to aviation tax. Air passenger duty will be frozen this year, with a hike linked to the retail price index planned for April 2012, George Osborne said. The government said in the emergency June Budget [...]
Tourist tax rise scrapped and Learjet raid delayed March 23, 2011 THE chancellor scrapped a planned rise in air passenger duty yesterday, but admitted that legal difficulties have shelved a change to aviation tax. Air passenger duty will be frozen this year, with a hike linked to the retail price index planned for April 2012, George Osborne said. The government said in the emergency June Budget [...]
Shaftesbury profits rise as West End sites fend off retail gloom May 23, 2012 THE PROSPEROUS West End continued to shelter Shaftesbury from the wider gloom in the retail sector as the London property firm posted a 15 per cent jump in first half profits. The company, which owns 500 properties across London’s key tourist hotspots including Carnaby Street and China Town reported a pre-tax profit of £16.1m in [...]