VisitBritain is set to welcome more than 120 international travel trade buyers for a series of educational visits across Britain.
The trade visits will begin from 28 January and comprise a mix of three-to-five-day itineraries to destinations across England, Wales and Scotland.
Buyers from 16 international markets are taking part including representatives from the UK’s three largest inbound markets the USA, France and Germany.
Other markets include Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries, India, Italy, the Netherlands, the Nordic countries, South Korea and Spain.
The hosted visits are part of the ‘Showcase Britain’ event, which gets underway with a networking event for buyers and media at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Thursday 26 January.
The buyers will be officially welcomed by VisitBritain Chairman Nick de Bois CBE followed by updates from the agency’s trade teams, London & Partners, VisitScotland and Visit Wales.
Before heading off on their educational tours, the buyers will also attend the ‘Britain & Ireland Marketplace’ (BIM) on 27 January.
There they will have a full day of appointments with tourism suppliers and destinations.
The educational visits come as VisitBritain also gears up to host its flagship global trade event ExploreGB Virtual from 27 February to 2 March.
VisitBritain CEO Patricia Yates said:
“We are delighted to be showcasing Britain to international buyers to drive bookings.
“From the beauty of our coast and countryside to the exciting variety of our cultural attractions to our world class dining and accommodation, buyers will experience first-hand the warmest of British welcomes and the outstanding and varied tourism products on offer.
“Working with the international travel trade is crucial to ensuring they are ready to sell Britain, as well as to broadening travel itineraries, encouraging visitors to explore further and stay longer.”
VisitBritain is also set to launch a new GREAT Britain marketing campaign in February to drive bookings, inviting visitors to ‘See Things Differently’.
The campaign captures major events in 2023 including the Coronation of King Charles III in May, with an additional Bank Holiday announced, and Liverpool hosting the Eurovision Song Contest, on behalf of Ukraine, also in May.
VisitBritain’s latest forecast for 2023 estimates 35.1 million inbound visits to the UK, 86% of 2019 levels and 18% higher than levels seen in 2022.
Its forecast for overseas visitor spending in the UK this year is £29.5 billion, a projected record high for annual inbound visitor spend.
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