Glasgow witnesses growing number of tourists last year

Wednesday, August 1, 2018

The number of tourists visiting Glasgow went up by almost 20% last year. Also, expenditure increased by more than a third to £319m.

 
Glasgow’s growth outperformed the Scottish average which saw visitor numbers increase by 17% to 3.2m and spending going up 23% to £2.3bn.

 
In 2017, the majority of the city’s tourists came from Europe and North America.

 
David McDonald, chairman of Glasgow Life and deputy leader of Glasgow City Council, said, “Attracting more international visitors through creative marketing and inspirational content is at the heart of Glasgow’s tourism plan. Our focus is on showcasing Glasgow as an outstanding global city – one that’s welcoming, vibrant and culturally rich with an unrivalled visitor experience and world-class customer service.”

 
He added, “We know the global tourism market is fiercely competitive, but there’s no shortage of compelling reasons to visit Glasgow and that’s reflected in these record figures, which is a real boost to our reputation and tourism economy.”

 
Glasgow saw a 40% increase in the number of people visiting from North America compared to 2016. European tourists spent £114m while North American visitors contributed £86m. The average stay lasted five nights. Glasgow also attracted more North American visitors than Manchester, Birmingham and Liverpool.

 
The city has benefitted from conferences and major events like Celtic Connections, the World Pipe Band Championships and the World Irish Dancing Championships which generated nearly £34m for the local economy.

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