We know it’s the best city in the world but, according to a report by the Office for National Statistics, Edinburgh is the most popular city in Scotland and second in the UK with overseas visitors.
There was a 6% increase in foreign visitors since last year, most notably from North America. These tourists spent an extra £155 million during their trips here which is up 9% on the previous year.
Tourism Secretary Fiona Hyslop said: “These figures underline Scotland’s appeal as a world-class tourism destination and are a credit to our tourism industry’s hard work to attract and welcome more than 2.7 million overseas visitors last year.
“We have seen an 18 per cent increase in the number of visits from North America and welcomed more than 1.6 million visitors from across Europe, highlighting the strength of our connections with the US and our neighbours on the continent.
“Our overseas visitors spent £1.85 billion in 2016, a 9% increase on the previous year and a welcome boost for our tourism and hospitality sectors and wider economy.
“We are committed to working with VisitScotland and the tourism sector to build further on Scotland’s reputation as a must visit, must return destination.”
The ONS report which aims to inform the travel and tourism industry shows that UK residents have also been travelling out of the UK more than the previous year with a jump of 8%. The report can be read in full here.
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
