With the sunny weather set to continue and Britain’s gardens well and really in bloom, the national tourism agency has released research which reveals that a staggering £7.8 billion was spent by tourists enjoying a garden inside the UK, with a huge chunk coming from younger visitors.
A VisitBritain study identified that of the 31 million folks who are likely to visit Britain per annum, around a 3rd enjoy a park or garden, with around 2.4 million aged between 25-34 against just 1.4 million aged between 55-64.
There were 2.1 million visits from those aged 35-44 involving parks or gardens, while nearly three-quarters of 1,000,000 were aged 65 or over.
Overall those aged under-35 were particularly more likely to visit a park or garden, with 41 per cent of visits doing so in comparison with 33 per cent of visits from those aged over 35.
The latest figures confirm that going to a park or garden is likely one of the leading activities for our overseas guests, accounting for 36 per cent of all visitors, placing only behind eating out, going to pubs and shopping.
It means visitors are surprisingly likely to spend time in a park or garden than a museum, castle, historic house or art gallery.
Over 1/2 all ‘holiday’ visitors (54 per cent) explore our green surrounds yearly, a favorable indication that admiration is growing the world over for Britain’s attractive scenery and wonderfully crafted gardens.
It remains an activity which visitors can enjoy whatever their age group, from Bodnant Gardens with spectacular views across Snowdonia to the intriguing Muncaster within the Lake District or the sector famous world-famous historic gardens at Inverewe within the Scottish Highlands.
London has also just celebrated 100 years of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show and is home to 8 Royal Parks and the globally acknowledged UNESCO World Heritage Site of Kew Gardens.
Unsurprisingly the preferred time of year to go to gardens is the summer months, with July to September accounting for four million of the once a year tally.
By contrast, just 1.6 million visited gardens within the first quarter of 2011.
The reason visitors come here plays a powerful role in determining what they do during their trip with tourists on ‘holiday’ making up the majority of visits (6.4 million) followed a far off second by those here to work out their family and friends (3.2 million).
Sandie Dawe, chief executive, VisitBritain said: “We’ve completed three big pieces of analysis which all indicate that our parks, gardens and natural beauty are a valuable tourism asset, admired internationally and enjoyed by our visitors.
“It’s hugely encouraging to determine our gardens are as well liked by the more youthful generation as they’re with 55-plus age groups.
“Post-Games perceptions of england have shifted for the higher and time spent in any of our glorious parks is something to be cherished- especially when the sun is out.”