Visitor Attraction Trends England

Transcription

1 Visitor Attraction Trends England 2004

2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS VisitBritain would like to thank all representatives and operators in the attraction sector who provided information for the national survey on which this report is based. No part of this publication may be reproduced for commercial purposes without previous written consent of VisitBritain. Extracts may be quoted if the source is acknowledged. Statistics in this report are given in good faith on the basis of information provided by proprietors of attractions. VisitBritain regrets it cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information contained in this report nor accept responsibility for error or misrepresentation. Published by VisitBritain (incorporated under the 1969 Development of Tourism Act as the British Tourist Authority) 2005 British Tourist Authority (trading as VisitBritain) Cover images From left to right: Alnwick Castle, Legoland Windsor, Kent and East Sussex Railway, Royal Academy of Arts, Penshurst Place VisitBritain is grateful to English Heritage and the MLA for their financial support for the 2004 survey. ISBN August 2005 VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

3 CONTENTS CONTENTS A KEY FINDINGS 4 1 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Research objectives Survey method Population, sample and response rate Guide to the tables 14 2 ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS England visit trends by attraction category England visit trends by admission type England visit trends by volume of visits to attractions England visit trends by geographic location England visit trends by proportion of overseas visits England visit trends by proportion of child visits Factors affecting visits to attractions in ENGLISH GOVERNMENT OFFICE REGION VISIT TRENDS Visit trends by English Government Office Region Visit trends by attraction category within English GOR Visit trends by admission type by English GOR Visit trends by volume of visits by English GOR Visit trends by geographic location by English GOR 26 4 ADULT ADMISSION PRICE TRENDS Adult admission prices by English GOR Adult admission prices by volume of visits Adult admission prices by attraction category Adult admission prices by geographic location Adult admission prices by proportion of overseas visits Adult admission prices by proportion of child visits 31 5 REVENUE AND MARKETING EXPENDITURE TRENDS Gross revenue trend Marketing expenditure trend TRENDS IN NUMBER OF VISITS TO ENGLAND ATTRACTIONS VISITS TO INDIVIDUAL ATTRACTIONS Major attractions in England Major attractions in English Government Office Regions Individual attractions by category type 61 Appendix 1 Reference sources 104 Appendix 2 Questionnaire and guidelines Appendix 3 Index of attractions in section VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

4 KEY FINDINGS A. KEY FINDINGS A.1 Overall trends in visits to English attractions Whilst 2003 was the sunniest on record in England, beating the previous sunniest in 1995, 2004 saw the return of a more traditional English summer, with England experiencing the wettest summer since 1912, August was a particularly wet month. Parts of the UK such as the Midlands, Northern and Eastern England had double the usual amount of rainfall in August. The Met Office issued over 100 flash weather warnings across England in August The 16 th August 2004 saw extensive localised flooding in Boscastle, Cornwall. A slight bounce-back in visitor numbers was to be expected in 2004 as the tourism industry recovered from the negative factors affecting travel in the first half of 2003 such as the Iraq war and SARS virus. The 2,099 England visitor attractions that provided visits figures for both 2003 and 2004 reported an average increase of +1% in Table A.1 England visit trends by attraction category (%) Category Attractions % 04/03 sample Country parks (87) +4 Farms (81) +2 Gardens (130) -6 Historic houses/castles (394) -1 Other historic properties (150) +3 Leisure/theme parks (38) -1 Museums/art galleries (670) +4 Steam/heritage railways (48) +3 Visitor/heritage centres (87) +2 Wildlife attractions/zoos (106) +1 Workplaces (99) -* Places of worship (92) +1 Other (117) -* England (2,099) +1 The majority of categories showed growth in However, visits to most attraction categories remained relatively stable in 2004 following some notable fluctuations between 2002 and VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

5 KEY FINDINGS Museums/art galleries, which represent around a third of all attractions, recorded a notable increase in visits (+4%) in 2004, following a year of stability in Growth in visits from the introduction of free entry to the previously paid entry national museums slowed as a result of the hot summer of 2003 (which also affected many other indoor attractions), but was reinvigorated in Country parks (+4%) also continued their 2002/3 recovery after their decline in Farm attractions (which had seen the largest increase in visits in 2003), continued their recovery, albeit at a slower rate (+2%) than Following their rise of +6% in 2003, driven primarily by the hot summer, visits to gardens declined by - 6% in Conversely, following recent declines, visits to places of worship (+1%) showed signs of stability in Table A.2 England visit trends by admission type (%) Admission Attractions Increase No change Decrease % 04/03 sample Free (755) Paid (1,344) * England (2,099) The increase in visits during 2004 was driven by free attractions (+3%), particularly museums/art galleries and, to a lesser extent, country parks and places of worship (see Table 2.3). Visits to paid attractions remained stable. Table A.3 England visit trends by geographic location (%) Geographic location Attractions % 04/03 sample Coastal (214) -1 Rural (980) -* Urban (905) +3 England (2,099) +1 The overall increase in visits during 2004 was driven by a recovery among urban attractions (+3%), which had experienced a slight decline ( 1%) in 2003 following the hot summer. Following strong years of recovery since 2001, visits to rural attractions stabilised in 2004 (-*%). Visits to coastal attractions declined slightly (-1%) in 2004, following a slight increase due to the hot summer in 2003 (+1%). VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

6 KEY FINDINGS Table A.4 England visit trends by volume of visits (%) Volume of visits Attractions % 04/03 sample 20,000 or less (1037) -2 20,001-50,000 (396) +* 50, ,000 (251) , ,000 (189) -1 Over 200,000 (226) +2 England (2,099) +1 During 2004, the trend for visits to migrate away from smaller attractions to larger attractions has continued. Attractions with 20,000 visits or less reported a slight decline in visits (-2%), following two years in which their increase has been lower than at larger attractions. Conversely, attractions with over 200,000 visits recorded the highest level of increase (+2%) in 2004, driven by a recovery in visits to some of the major national free museums and art galleries following the hot summer of Table A.5 Overall visits trends by English Government Office Region (%) Region Attractions % 04/03 sample North East (120) +1 North West (190) +* Yorkshire/The Humber (167) +1 East Midlands (158) -1 West Midlands (183) +2 Eastern (335) +1 London (158) +6 South East (396) -1 South West (392) -2 England (2,099) +1 It should be noted that up to 2002, results were analysed by Regional Tourist Board areas. As the regional tourism organisations have been restructured within the Regional Development Agencies framework, the Government Office Regions (GOR), to which RDA areas correspond, have been used in 2003 and 2004 for regional analysis. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

7 KEY FINDINGS Visits to London attractions recovered strongly in 2004 (+6%), more than compensating for the decline of -2% in 2003 (London was particularly affected by the summer heat of 2003). The West Midlands, second only behind London in terms of its representation of urban attractions, also increased slightly (+2%). Conversely, the South West (which benefited from the hot weather in 2003), experienced a slight decline in visits during Visits to each of the other GORs remained relatively stable in A.2 Overall trends in admission prices Table A.6 Adult admission prices (paid admission) by category (%) Category Attractions Average adult charge % 04/03 Sample Country parks (11) Farms (50) Gardens (91) Historic houses/castles (332) Other historic properties (102) Leisure/theme parks (18) Museums/art galleries (247) Steam/heritage railways (40) Visitor/heritage centres (26) Wildlife attractions/zoos (69) Workplaces (24) Places of worship (8) Other (54) England (1,072) Average adult admission charges in 2004 varied greatly amongst categories, ranging from 2.91 for other historic properties to 9.84 for leisure/theme parks. Admission prices increased by an average of +6% in 2004, similar to that observed in 2003 (+5%). Admission charge increases among the two attraction categories representing the highest numbers of paid attractions, historic houses/castles and museums/art galleries, were slightly lower than for England as a whole (+5% and +4% respectively). Categories with the highest increases in adult admission charges in 2004 were steam/heritage railways (+14%), country parks (+11%) - (however note small sample size) and farms (+10%). Farms also recorded the highest increase in admission charges in 2003 (+8%). VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

8 KEY FINDINGS A.3 Overall trends in gross revenue Table A.7 Gross revenue trend by English GOR (%) Region Attractions Up Similar Down % 04/03 sample North East (106) North West (157) Yorkshire/The Humber (149) East Midlands (135) West Midlands (157) East (290) London (116) South East (339) South West (337) England (1,786) Overall just under half of English attractions (45%) reported an increase in gross revenue from visitors in 2004, slightly lower than that observed in 2003 (53%). Just under a quarter (22%) reported a decrease, slightly higher than in 2003 (18%). The average change reported in 2004 was +7%, again slightly lower than that observed in either 2003 (+10%) or 2002 (+11%). All regions saw an increase in gross revenue in 2004, but London (+16%), the North West (+11%) and South West (+10%) attractions reported the highest average levels of growth. Table A.8 Gross revenue trend by attraction category (%) Category Attractions Up Similar Down % 04/03 sample Country parks (75) Farms (81) Gardens (110) Historic houses/castles (301) Other historic properties (129) Leisure/theme parks (40) Museums/art galleries (548) Steam/heritage railways (49) Visitor/heritage centres (78) Wildlife attractions/zoos (93) Workplaces (98) Places of worship (65) Other (119) England (1,786) VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

9 KEY FINDINGS With the exception of gardens, whose gross revenues declined by an average of 1% in 2004 reflecting the decline in visits, all other attraction categories recorded increases in gross revenue in 2004 compared with However, there were significant variations across the categories. Despite a slight decline in visits and only an average increase in admission charges, leisure/theme parks recorded the highest average increase in gross revenue in 2004 (+19%), as was the case in 2003 (+18%). Farms (+17%) and country parks (+14%) also recorded significant average increases in gross revenue, reflecting the higher than average increases in admission charges at attractions within these categories. The average increase in gross revenue at museums/art galleries (+9%) was slightly above the average for England as a whole, although not as high as might have been expected given the significant increase in visits (+4%). Wildlife attractions/zoos (+9%) and workplaces (+9%) also recorded notable average increases in gross revenue. A.3 Marketing expenditure trend Table A.9 Movement in spend on marketing by attraction category (%) Category Sample Increase Similar Decrease Country parks (79) Farms (79) Gardens (103) Historic houses/castles (225) Other historic properties (91) Leisure/theme parks (37) Museums/art galleries (549) Steam/heritage railways (49) Visitor/heritage centres (75) Wildlife attractions/zoos (90) Workplaces (93) Places of worship (66) Other (116) England (1,652) Note: percentages read across 25% of attractions indicated an increase in marketing spend in 2004 when compared to 2003 and only 13% a decrease. However, this represents a slight tightening of budgets since 2003 when 30% of attractions indicated an increase and only 11% a decrease. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

10 KEY FINDINGS Wildlife attractions/zoos (40%), farms (39%) and leisure/theme parks (38%) were most likely to state that their marketing expenditure had increased. However, it should also be noted that 16% of leisure/theme parks stated that their marketing expenditure had decreased, a higher proportion than any other attraction category. Visitor/heritage centres (15%) and other historic properties (15%) were also slightly more likely than other attraction categories to record a decrease in expenditure. Table A.10 Movement in spend on marketing by English GOR (%) Region Sample Increase Similar Decrease North East (88) North West (156) Yorkshire/The Humber (132) East Midlands (121) West Midlands (149) East (272) London (106) South East (320) South West (308) England (1,652) Note: percentages read across Each region recorded a fairly similar proportion of attractions that had increased their marketing expenditure. Only Yorkshire/The Humber (18%) recorded a significantly lower proportion of attractions that had increased their marketing expenditure. Conversely, despite a significant average increase in visits, 19% of attractions in London recorded a decline in their marketing expenditure, a higher proportion than in any other region. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

11 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 1. INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Visitor Attraction Trends England 2004 presents the findings of the Survey of Visits to Visitor Attractions undertaken in England by VisitBritain. The report provides a comprehensive England-wide analysis of trends plus visits data for individual attractions. Separate reports are produced by the national tourist organisations of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales giving results for their own countries. Visitor Attraction Definition For the purpose of the survey, the definition of a visitor attraction is:..an attraction where it is feasible to charge admission for the sole purpose of sightseeing. The attraction must be a permanently established excursion destination, a primary purpose of which is to allow access for entertainment, interest, or education; rather than being primarily a retail outlet or a venue for sporting, theatrical, or film performances. It must be open to the public, without prior booking, for published periods each year, and should be capable of attracting day visitors or tourists as well as local residents. In addition, the attraction must be a single business, under a single management, so that it is capable of answering the economic questions on revenue, employment etc. As there are a number of attractions which are primarily retail outlets but have an attraction element, a set of guidelines have been included with the questionnaire since 2001 asking such attractions to take part only if they could provide data for the attraction element itself. This set of guidelines can be found in Appendix Research Objectives The purpose of the survey is to monitor trends in the visitor attraction sector throughout England and to improve understanding of the dynamics of the sector. The findings contribute to regional and national estimates of the economic impact of tourism and inform regional development and planning work. The results of the survey allow operators to benchmark their operation within their category, within their region and across the sector as a whole. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

12 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 1.2 Survey Method The survey was carried out by means of a self-completion questionnaire mailed to all known English visitor attractions which met, as far as could be determined, the definition of a visitor attraction used in the survey. A copy of the questionnaire used can be found in Appendix 2. MEW Research currently holds the contract for the survey in England and is responsible for the preparation of this report. 1.3 Population, sample and response rate 4,854 English visitor attractions were invited to take part in the 2004 survey. Some 2,244 English visitor attractions provided visits figures for year 2004, an effective response rate of 46%. A further 344 attractions (7%) responded, of which 35 attractions indicated that they were closed in 2004 (23 temporarily, 12 permanently), 136 that they could not provide visit figures for lack of information, 43 that they did not consider themselves to meet the definition of an attraction and 130 that they did not wish to participate in the survey. Table 1.1 Response rate by attraction category Category Number of attractions Number of attractions that Effective response rate surveyed provided visits data Country Parks % Farms % Gardens % Historic Properties 1, % Leisure/Theme Parks % Museums/Art Galleries 1, % Steam/Heritage Railways % Visitor/Heritage Centres % Wildlife Attractions % Workplaces % Other % Total 4,854 2,244 46% VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

13 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Response rates within the two attraction categories which account for over half of all English attractions museums/art galleries (51% response) and historic properties (48% response) were slightly above average. Response rates were also high among farms (54%), visitor/heritage centres (53%) and other attractions (58%). As was the case in 2003, leisure/theme parks (26%), workplaces (31%) and wildlife attractions (34%) had the lowest response rates. Table 1.2 Methods used by visitor attractions to record visits Methods used to record data Attractions Sample (2,244) % Ticket or group bookings 52 Manual count 33 Mechanical or electronic 11 Estimate 10 Sample count 7 Other 4 Not stated 3 Almost all operators (97%) provided details on methods used to calculate visitor numbers. Some may have used more than one method, hence the total exceeds 100%. The most frequent methods used to record visits data were ticket sales/group bookings, followed by a manual count. The proportions using each method were similar to those observed in VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

14 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND 1.4 Guide to the tables Confidentiality Visits figures for individual attractions do not appear in this report if the attraction operator did not authorise them for publication. Data provided by operators who requested confidentiality is included in the aggregated calculations. 395 attractions requested that their visits figures remain confidential in Estimates If operators have stated their visits are estimates, this is clearly indicated in Section 6 with an E following the number of visits. Responding sample sizes In most of the tables, the number of attractions providing information is shown in brackets in the first column of figures under (Attractions sample). In tables relating to visits, the number of visits reported by responding attractions is shown instead under (Visits sample). The sample sizes vary between tables as the number of attractions responding to individual questions varied. Admission Tables in Section 6 include the charging status of each visitor attraction (in the column entitled Entry ). F indicates that admission to the main attraction is free of charge. However, it should be noted that some free attractions may charge for entry to particular parts of the attraction or special exhibitions. Where an attraction charges admission for the main attraction element, the adult admission price is noted. Symbols In the tables, an asterisk is used to indicate a percentage is less than 0.5%. A plus or minus sign indicates whether the value is positive or negative. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

15 INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND Abbreviations Abbreviation Category Description CP Country Parks Country parks and forest parks F Farms Farms, rare breeds, shire horse centres and farm animals G Gardens Gardens, arboretums and botanical gardens HH Historic houses/castles Historic houses, historic houses and gardens, palaces, castles, forts OHP Other historic properties Historic monuments, archaeological sites, historic ships, windmills, watermills and other historic properties LTP Leisure/Theme Parks Leisure parks and theme parks MAG Museums/Art Galleries Museums and/or art galleries and science centres R Steam/Heritage Railways Steam railways and heritage railways VC Visitor/Heritage Centres Visitor centres and heritage centres WI Wildlife Attractions Nature reserves, wetlands, wildlife trips, safari parks, zoos, aquariums and aviaries WP Workplaces Distilleries, vineyards, breweries and industrial or craft premises WO Places of Worship Cathedrals, churches and other places of worship O Other Attractions that do not fit into any of the categories outlined above Abbreviation Government Office Region Counties/unitary authorities within region EAST East Counties: Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Essex, Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk UAs: Luton, Peterborough, Southend-on-Sea, Thurrock EM East Midlands Counties: Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire UAs: Derby, Leicester, Nottingham, Rutland LON London All Greater London boroughs NE North East Counties: County Durham, Northumberland UAs: Darlington, Hartlepool, Middlesborough, Redcar & Cleveland, Stockton-on-Tees Former Met.: Tyne and Wear (Gateshead, Newcastle, N Tyneside, S Tyneside, Sunderland) NW North West Counties: Cheshire, Cumbria, Lancashire UAs: Blackburn with Darwen, Blackpool, Halton, Warrington Former Met.: Greater Manchester (Bolton, Bury, Manchester, Oldham, Rochdale, Salford, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan), Merseyside (Liverpool, Knowsley, Sefton, St Helens, Wirral) SE South East Counties: Buckinghamshire, East Sussex, Hampshire, Kent, Oxfordshire, Surrey, West Sussex UAs: Bracknell Forest, Brighton & Hove, Isle of Wight, Medway, Milton Keynes, Portsmouth, Reading, Slough, Southampton W. Berkshire, Windsor & Maidenhead, Wokingham SW South West Counties: Cornwall, Devon, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire, Isles of Scilly UAs: Bath & NE Somerset, Bournemouth, Bristol, N Somerset, Plymouth, Poole, Swindon, Torbay, S Gloucestershire WM West Midlands Counties: Shropshire, Staffordshire, Warwickshire, Worcestershire UAs: Herefordshire, Stoke-on-Trent, Telford & Wrekin Former Met.: West Midlands (Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall, Wolverhampton) Y&H Yorkshire/ The Humber Counties: North Yorkshire UAs: East Riding of Yorkshire, Kingston-upon-Hull, NE Lincolnshire, N Lincolnshire, York Former Met.: South Yorkshire (Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, Sheffield) West Yorkshire (Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds, Wakefield) VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

16 ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS This chapter analyses trends in the number of visits to English attractions that provided data for both 2003 and ,099 out of the 4,854 English visitor attractions mailed in the survey provided visits figures for both 2003 and The 2,099 English visitor attractions that provided visits figures for both years reported an average increase of +1% in The rate of increase has slowed slightly from that observed in 2003 (+2%) and significantly from that observed in 2002 (+8%), when attractions were recovering from the losses caused by the Foot & Mouth epidemic and September 11th (an overall decline of -2% was reported in 2001.) 45% of attractions indicated they had benefited from an increase in visits (54% in 2003) while 41% reported a loss (34% in 2003) in visits was the sunniest on record in England, beating the previous sunniest in It was also the 2 nd driest year since This tended to favour outdoor attractions over indoor attractions in saw a return to typical weather patterns, which benefited museums/art galleries in particular. 2.1 England visit trends by attraction category Table 2.1 England visit trends by attraction category (%) Category Attractions Increase No change Decrease % 04/03 sample Country parks (87) Farms (81) Gardens (130) Historic houses/castles (394) Other historic properties (150) Leisure/theme parks (38) Museums/art galleries (670) Steam/heritage railways (48) Visitor/heritage centres (87) Wildlife attractions/zoos (106) Workplaces (99) * Places of worship (92) Other (117) * England (2,099) VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

17 ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS Museums/art galleries recorded a notable increase in visits (+4%) in 2004, following a year of stability in Growth in visits from the introduction of free entry to the previously paid entry national museums slowed as a result of the hot summer of 2003 (which also affected many other indoor attractions), but was reinvigorated in The most notable positive factor mentioned by museums/art galleries as influencing visits in 2004 was the introduction of new exhibitions/additional attractions. 18% of all museums/art galleries mentioned this as a positive factor. Country parks (+4%) and farms (+2%) also continued their 2002/3 recovery after their decline in Steam/heritage railways (+3%) and other historic properties (+3%) also reported notable increases in visits in Following their rise of +6% in 2003, driven primarily by the hot summer, visits to gardens declined by - 6% in Over half (57%) of gardens reported a decline in visits during 2004, with 54% of all gardens citing the weather as the most important negative factor influencing visits in Conversely, following recent declines, visits to places of worship (+1%) showed signs of stability in Positive factors influencing this recovery were more likely to be general tourism/economic market changes rather than specific improvements to the places of worship themselves. 2.2 England visit trends by admission type Table 2.2 England visit trends by admission type (%) Admission Attractions Increase No change Decrease % 04/03 sample Free (755) Paid (1,344) * England (2,099) The increase in visits during 2004 was driven by free attractions (+3%), with visits to paid attractions remaining stable Table 2.3 overleaf illustrates visit trends by free/paid admission within each category type. The increase in visits to free attractions has been driven particularly by museums/art galleries (+5%) and, to a lesser extent, country parks (+3%) and places of worship (+4%). Increases among other historic properties (+12%) and farms (+4%) are noteworthy, although one should beware of the small base sizes within each of these free sectors. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

18 ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS The apparent overall stability within the paid attractions sector masks some significant variations between the attraction categories. Gardens (-8%) reported a significant decline in visits, whilst visitor/heritage centres (+7%) and country parks (+6%) both reported notable increases. Table 2.3 England visit trends by attraction category and admission type (%) Category Admission Attractions sample % 04/03 Country parks Free (64) +3 Paid (23) +6 Farms Free (12) +4 Paid (69) +1 Gardens Free (20) +* Paid (110) -8 Historic houses/castles Free (29) +1 Paid (365) -1 Other historic properties Free (26) +12 Paid (123) +1 Leisure/theme parks Free (6) -2 Paid (32) -1 Museums/art galleries Free (358) +5 Paid (313) +1 Steam/heritage railways Free (1) n/a Paid (47) +3 Visitor/heritage centres Free (47) -2 Paid (40) +7 Wildlife attractions/zoos Free (19) -2 Paid (87) +1 Workplaces Free (70) -1 Paid (29) +2 Places of worship Free (78) +4 Paid (14) -1 Other Free (25) -* Paid (92) -1 England Free (755) +3 Paid (1,344) +* n/a the figure has been suppressed because of the small base size in order to maintain operator confidentiality VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

19 ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS England visit trends by volume of visits to attractions Table 2.4 England visit trends by volume of visits (%) Volume of visits Attractions Increase No change Decrease % 04/03 sample 20,000 or less (1,037) ,001-50,000 (396) * 50, ,000 (251) , ,000 (189) Over 200,000 (226) England (2,099) During 2004, the trend for visits to migrate away from smaller attractions to larger attractions has continued. Attractions with 20,000 visits or less reported a slight decline in visits (-2), following two years in which their increase has been lower than at larger attractions. Conversely, attractions with over 200,000 visits recorded the highest level of increase (+2%) in 2004, driven by a recovery in visits to some of the major national free museums and art galleries following the hot summer of England visit trends by geographic location Table 2.5 England visit trends by geographic location (%) Geographic location Attractions Increase No change Decrease % 04/03 sample Coastal (214) Rural (980) * Urban (905) England (2,099) The overall increase in visits during 2004 was driven by a recovery among urban attractions (+3%), which had experienced a slight decline ( 1%) in 2003 following the hot summer. Almost half (49%) of urban attractions recorded an increase in visits in Museums/art galleries drove this increase among urban attractions. Following strong years of recovery since 2001, visits to rural attractions stabilised in 2004 (-*%). Rural attractions were a particular beneficiary of the hot weather in 2003, increasing visits by +6%. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

20 ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS Visits to coastal attractions declined slightly (-1%) in 2004, following a slight increase due to the hot summer in 2003 (+1%). The weather was the most influential negative factor upon visits, mentioned by 36% of all coastal attractions as the most important factor in England visit trends by proportion of overseas visits Table 2.6 England visit trends by proportion of overseas visits (%) Overseas visits Attractions Increase No change Decrease % 04/03 sample 30% or less (1,587) * Over 30% (80) England (2,099) Although one should note the low base size for attractions with over 30% of visits by overseas visitors, visits to these attractions increased by an average of +8%. This represents a significant recovery following the decline of 3% in Many of the attractions with over 30% overseas visits are situated in and around London. As detailed in Section 3.1, London was the principal generator of increases in visits between 2003 and England visit trends by proportion of child visits Table 2.7 England visit trends by proportion of child visits (%) Child visits Attractions Increase No change Decrease % 03/02 sample 30% or less (1,195) Over 30% (555) England (2,099) There was no significant difference between attractions with more than 30% of visits made by children (+1% increase in visits) and those with 30% or fewer children (+1%). VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

21 ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS Factors affecting visits to attractions in 2004 Visitor attraction operators were asked to state which factors they believed had influenced visits to their attraction in 2004, whether positive or negative. In addition, they were asked to identify separately the most important factor (positive and negative). As a wide range of individual factors were mentioned, often by a small proportion, they have been grouped by type of response. A summary of the factor groupings is presented in the following section. Proportions are based on all attractions that mentioned any positive factor (57% of all attractions). Table 2.8 Positive factors influencing visits to attractions in 2004 Most important factor Factors receiving any mention Events/exhibitions improvement (26%) Events/exhibitions improvement (35%) Weather (14%) Weather (18%) Other site improvement (12%) Other site improvement (16%) Becoming better known/interested/area improving (11%) Becoming better known/interested/area improving (18%) Advertising/marketing (10%) Advertising/marketing (20%) Facility improvement/refurbishment/investment (8%) Facility improvement/refurbishment/investment (13%) Publicity/PR (8%) Publicity/PR (18%) Tourism/economic market changes (5%) Tourism/economic market changes (7%) Other (5%) Other (10%) The most notable difference between 2003 and 2004 in terms of positive factors mentioned, was the weather. The hot summer of 2003 induced 47% of those attractions that mentioned a positive factor, to cite the weather as a positive. In 2004, this declined to just 18%, with only 14% mentioning the weather as the most positive factor. Improvements in events/exhibitions (35%) were the most frequently mentioned positive factors in 2004, with 26% mentioning these as the most important positive factors. This represents a significant increase on 2003 (16%). This was particularly likely to be mentioned as the most important factor by museums/art galleries (37%), with particular emphasis upon new exhibitions/attractions (24%). Advertising/marketing was mentioned as a positive factor by 20% of attractions in 2004, a slight decline on 2003 (29%). Advertising/marketing encompasses any mention of new, more or better advertising or marketing, including all materials and promotion. Whilst publicity/pr was seen as the most important positive factors by only 8% of attractions, it was mentioned by 18% of attractions as a positive factor at all. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

22 ENGLAND VISIT TRENDS Facility improvement/refurbishment/investment was mentioned by 13% of attractions and included any site refurbishments (5%), new, more or better facilities (3%), catering (2%), external investment (1%), transport (1%) and retail (1%). Table 2.9 Negative factors influencing visits to attractions in 2004 Most important factor Factors receiving any mention Weather (49%) Weather (54%) Facility decline/refurbishment/investment (12%) Facility decline/refurbishment/investment (19%) General visitor decline/competition/area declining (12%) General visitor decline/competition/area declining (22%) Advertising/marketing/PR (7%) Advertising/marketing/PR (14%) Tourism/economic market changes (6%) Tourism/economic market changes (11%) Other site decline (6%) Other site decline (9%) Events/exhibitions decline (6%) Events/exhibitions decline (9%) Other (2%) Other (7%) Whilst the weather was less likely to be mentioned as a positive factor in 2004 than in 2003, it was significantly more likely to be mentioned as a negative factor. The weather was mentioned by 54% of attractions as a negative factor, with 49% mentioning the weather as the most important negative factor compared with just 24% in Coastal (59%) and rural (59%) attractions were equally likely to mention the weather as the most important negative factor. Similarly, outdoor attractions such as gardens (79%), farms (78%), wildlife attractions/zoos (71%), leisure/theme parks (71%) and country parks (70%) were most likely to mention the weather as the most important negative factor. Facility decline/refurbishment/investment decline was mentioned as a negative factor by 19% of attractions. This included a wide range of factors, the most frequently mentioned of which were access to the attraction (3%), closed/part closed for refurbishment (3%), lack of parking (3%), and an inability to afford to invest/budget issues (3%). 22% of attractions mentioned a general visitor decline/competition/area declining. General competition (11%), expensive/unpopular area to visit (5%), poor location (4%) and the novelty factor wearing off (3%) were most frequently mentioned. Tourism/economic market changes were mentioned by only 11% of attractions compared with 29% in The more stable geo-political situation, growth of the global economy and favourable movements in the exchange rate with the Euro all contributed to an improvement in inbound travel during VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

23 ENGLISH GOVERNMENT OFFICE REGIONS VISIT TRENDS 3. ENGLISH GOVERNMENT OFFICE REGIONS VISIT TRENDS This chapter provides an analysis of trends by English Government Office Region (GOR). It is based on 2,099 attractions that provided visits figures for both 2003 and The trends in these tables should be treated with caution due to the smaller number of attractions when the data is broken down within region. It should also be noted that up to 2002 results were analysed by Regional Tourist Board areas. As the regional tourism organisations have been restructured within the Regional Development Agency framework, the Government Office Regions, to which RDA areas correspond, are now being used for regional analysis. 3.1 Visit trends by English Government Office Region Table 3.1 Overall visits trends by English GOR (%) Region Attractions Increase No change Decrease % 04/03 sample North East (120) North West (190) * Yorkshire/The Humber (167) East Midlands (158) West Midlands (183) Eastern (335) London (158) South East (396) South West (392) England (2,099) Visits to London attractions recovered strongly in 2004 (+6%), more than compensating for the decline of -2% in 2003 (London was particularly affected by the summer heat of 2003). 54% of London attractions reported an increase in visits in 2004 compared with 45% across England as a whole. The West Midlands, second only behind London in terms of its representation of urban attractions, also increased slightly (+2%). VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

24 ENGLISH GOVERNMENT OFFICE REGIONS VISIT TRENDS Conversely, the South West (which benefited from the hot weather in 2003), experienced a slight decline in visits during 2004 (-2%). Although visits to the East Midlands region declined by only 1% overall, 48% of attractions in the region reported a decline in visits in 2004, more than any other region. Visits to each of the other GORs remained relatively stable in The North East experienced only a modest increase in visits during 2004, following dramatic increases in the recent past (+16% in 2003 and +18% in the Northumbria RTB in 2002). 3.2 Visit trends by attraction category by English GOR The trends in this table should be treated with particular caution since these are based in many regions on very small samples of attractions providing visits data in both 2003 and Table 3.2 Visits trends by English GOR by attraction category (%) Category Att. sample England NE NW Y&H EM WM EAST LON SE SW Att. Sample (2,099) (120) (190) (167) (158) (183) (335) (158) (396) (392) CP (87) * +* -2 F (81) G (130) * HH (394) OHP (150) LTP (38) * N/A +* +4 MAG (670) R (48) * +* N/A VC (87) WI (106) WP (99) -* * WO (92) O (117) -* * * -4-2 England (2,099) * The increase in visits to London in 2004 was driven primarily by a recovery in visits to museums/art galleries (+7%) and, to a lesser extent, increases in visits to historic houses/gardens (+5%). Similarly, the increase in visits to the West Midlands region was also driven by an increase in visits to museums/art galleries (+11%). VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

25 ENGLISH GOVERNMENT OFFICE REGIONS VISIT TRENDS Whilst visits to museums/art galleries increased by +4% across England as a whole, not every region experienced an increase. Visits to museums/art galleries in the South West declined by 4%, in the East Midlands by 2% and in the North West by 1%. The + 4% increase in visits to country parks across England was driven primarily by an increase in visits of +11% in the East, a region which contains over a quarter of the country parks responding to the survey. Visits to gardens declined in every region except Yorkshire/The Humber and London, although the decline was particularly marked in the South West (-15%), a region which contains over a quarter of all gardens responding to the survey. A further quarter of responding gardens were located in the South East, a region which experienced a -5% decline in visits to gardens in Visit trends by admission type by English GOR Table 3.3 Visits trends by English GOR by admission type (%) Admission Att. sample England NE NW Y&H EM WM EAST LON SE SW Att. Sample (2,099) (120) (190) (167) (158) (183) (335) (158) (396) (392) Free (755) * +3 +* Paid (1,344) -* -* +1 -* -3 -* * -2 England (2,099) * Whilst visits to free attractions increased by +3% across England, this masked some variation by region. London (+7%), the East (+7%), West Midlands (+4%) and Yorkshire/The Humber (+3%) all reported significant increases in visits to free attractions in Conversely, visits to free attractions in the South East declined by 3%. There was also regional variation in visits to paid attractions, with London reporting the only significant increase in visits (+4%) and the East (-4%), East Midlands (-3%) and South West (-2%) each recording notable declines. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

26 ENGLISH GOVERNMENT OFFICE REGIONS VISIT TRENDS 3.4 Visit trends by volume of visits by English GOR Table 3.4 Visits trends by English GOR by volume of visits (%) Volume Att. sample England NE NW Y&H EM WM EAST LON SE SW Att. Sample (2,099) (120) (190) (167) (158) (183) (335) (158) (396) (392) 20,000 or less (1,037) * * 20,001-50,000 (396) +* * , ,000 (251) * , ,000 (189) * -* Over 200,000 (226) +2 +* * -2 England (2,099) * The increase in visits among London attractions was driven primarily by the medium to large scale attractions whose visits number 20,000 or more. Indeed, visits to attractions in London with less than 20,000 visits declined by 2%. This represents a reversal of the pattern noted in 2003 which saw visits to these smaller attractions increase at the expense of the larger attractions. Attractions with over 200,000 visits increased their visits within every region apart from the South West (-2%) and East Midlands (-3%) in Furthermore, the South West was one of only three regions to experience a decline among these largest attractions in Visit trends by geographic location by English GOR Table 3.5 Visits trends by English GOR by geographic location (%) Location Att. sample England NE NW Y&H EM WM EAST LON SE SW Att. Sample (2,099) (120) (190) (167) (158) (183) (335) (158) (396) (392) Coastal (214) N/A -2 N/A -3-3 Rural (980) -* -* +3 +* -* N/A -2-2 Urban (905) * England (2,09) * Visits to urban attractions increased most significantly in London (+6%) and the East (+5%) in However, the East Midlands (-3%) reported a notable decline in visits to its urban attractions. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

27 ENGLISH GOVERNMENT OFFICE REGIONS VISIT TRENDS The slight decline in visits to coastal attractions was driven by decreases in visits to the South East (- 3%), South West (-3%) and East (-2%) regions, which between them, account for 79% of all responding coastal attractions in England. The notable increases in visits to rural attractions in 2003 have been replaced by stability in 2004 across all regions. VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

28 ADULT ADMISSION PRICE TRENDS ADULT ADMISSION PRICE TRENDS Just over three fifths of English attractions (63%) charged entry to the main attraction in 2004, the same proportion as observed in Some 1,072 attractions that were paid admission in both 2003 and 2004 provided admission charges in both years. The average adult admission charge rose by 24p in 2004, an increase of 6%. This was a slightly greater increase than that observed in both 2003 and 2002 (which saw increases of 20p, 5%, in both years). 4.1 Adult admission prices by English GOR Table 4.1 shows the percentage change in average adult admission charge between 2003 and 2004 within each Government Office Region. Table 4.1 Adult admission prices (paid admission attractions) by GOR (%) Region Attractions Average adult charge % 04/03 sample North East (55) North West (83) Yorkshire/The Humber (82) East Midlands (76) West Midlands (89) Eastern (140) London (57) South East (236) South West (254) England (1,072) Average increases in admission prices were similar across all regions, although there were minor differences. The highest increases were in the North East (+8%), where charges rose 30p from 3.62 to 3.92, and the South East (+8%), where charges rose 35p from 4.29 to Increases were more modest in the East (+3%) and North West (+4%) which saw increases of only 13p and 18p respectively. London continues to report the highest admission charges ( 5.67 in 2004), 1.26 higher than the average for England as a whole. Charges in 2004 were lowest in Yorkshire/The Humber ( 3.57). VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

29 ADULT ADMISSION PRICE TRENDS Adult admission prices by volume of visits Table 4.2 Adult admission prices (paid admission attractions) by visits (%) Volume of visits Attractions Average adult charge % 04/03 sample ,000 or less (514) ,001-50,000 (208) , ,000 (146) , ,000 (114) Over 200,000 (90) England (1,072) Attractions with higher visitor admissions tended to record higher average adult admission charges. Whereas the average adult admission charge in 2004 was 3.10 among attractions with 20,000 or fewer visits, among attractions with over 200,000 visits average adult admission was Percentage increases in average adult admission charges were similar regardless of the volume of admissions. Increases only varied from +4% (13p) at attractions with less than 20,000 visits to +7% (28p) at attractions with 20,000 to 50,000 visits and +7% (58p) at attractions with over 200,000 visits. 4.3 Adult admission prices by attraction category Table 4.3 Adult admission prices (paid admission) by category (%) Category Attractions Average adult charge % 04/03 Sample Country parks (11) Farms (50) Gardens (91) Historic houses/castles (332) Other historic properties (102) Leisure/theme parks (18) Museums/art galleries (247) Steam/heritage railways (40) Visitor/heritage centres (26) Wildlife attractions/zoos (69) Workplaces (24) Places of worship (8) Other (54) England (1,072) VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND

30 ADULT ADMISSION PRICE TRENDS Average adult admission charge varied greatly amongst categories, ranging from 2.91 for other historic properties to 9.84 for leisure/theme parks. The two attraction categories representing the highest proportion of paid attractions, museums/art galleries and historic houses/castles (representing over half of paid attractions), both reported admission charge increases slightly below those for attractions as a whole - +4% and +5% respectively. Categories with the highest percentage increases in adult admission charges in 2004 steam/heritage railways (+14%), country parks (+11%) and farms (+10%). However, one should note the low base sizes for the calculations. Categories with the lowest increases in average adult admission charges were workplaces (+1%) and other attractions (+2%). Again, one should note the low bases sizes for the calculations. 4.4 Adult admission prices by geographic location Table 4.4 Adult admission prices (paid adm.) by geographic location (%) Location Attractions Average adult charge % 04/03 sample Coastal (134) Rural (570) Urban (368) England (1,072) Rural attractions tended to record the highest average adult admission prices in 2004 ( 4.67), higher than both urban ( 4.10) and coastal ( 4.11) attractions. As in 2003, urban attractions recorded the highest increases in average adult admission prices, up by 25p in 2004, an increase of 7% on Coastal attractions reported only modest increases, up +3% (13p) on Adult admission prices by proportion of overseas visits Table 4.5 Adult admission prices (paid admission) by overseas visits (%) Overseas visits Attractions Average adult charge % 04/03 sample % or less (807) Over 30% (42) England (1,072) VISITOR ATTRACTION TRENDS ENGLAND