Tourism industry's £5.6 billion boost to Manchester

10th December 2008

The tourism industry contributed £5.6bn to the Greater Manchester economy in 2007 according to figures released today by Visit Manchester.

The Office of National Statistics has also confirmed that Manchester remained the third most popular destination in the UK during 2007, with 971,000 international visitors - a growth of 6% on 2006.

Paul Simpson, managing director of Visit Manchester, the tourist board for Greater Manchester, said: “Whilst these are very encouraging figures, the statistics represent a period before the current economic downturn. However, they highlight what the sector brings to the table and show just how key a part the industry plays in the success of the city-region.

“The significant development of the city’s tourism product, coupled with the continued rise of Manchester’s profile on the international stage, has left us in a very strong position from which to build on.

“The six world championship sports events we played host to this year brought with them an international following that we would look to attract again in the future and 2009 will see the return of the Manchester International Festival, which is expected to attract over 200,000 visitors to the city.”

The most popular tourist attractions within Greater Manchester during 2007 were:

1. The Lowry (800,000 visitors)
2. MOSI – The Museum of Science & Industry (704,975 visitors)
3. Manchester Art Gallery (393,650 visitors)
4. Bolton Museum, Aquarium & Archive (267,483 visitors)
5. Manchester United Football Club Museum (263,325 visitors)
6. Urbis (251,540 visitors)
7. The Manchester Museum (234,648 visitors)
8. Manchester Airport Aviation Viewing Park (226,087 visitors)
9. Imperial War Museum North (222,791 visitors)
10. Manchester Cathedral (162,000 visitors)

The UK’s most popular destination for international visitors was London, with Edinburgh following in second place. Behind Manchester in forth place was Glasgow, which has overtaken Birmingham for the first time since 1999.

The economic impact of the tourism industry is calculated by the STEAM model (Scarborough Tourism Economic Activity Monitor). The model is run by Global Tourism Solutions and uses factors such as the bed stock and monthly occupancy data of accommodation, attendance at attractions/major events and visitor numbers to the Visitor Information Centre to provide an indication of the economic impact of tourism on Greater Manchester.