Britain’s standing as a country where tourists are welcome has been enhanced by last year’s Olympic Games in London, it has been revealed.
Britain, the second most popular destination for Maltese travellers after Italy, is also rated more highly for sporting prowess following the Games, the worldwide survey conducted by Visit Britain showed.
But despite global coverage of the torch relay through some picturesque spots, the global view of Britain as being ‘rich in natural beauty’ barely improved.
Research in 15 countries asked people to rate 50 nations in various categories before the Games and afterwards.
In the category of the warmth of welcome to overseas visitors, Britain moved from 12th place overall before the Games to ninth afterwards.
In the ‘excels at sport’ category, Britain moved from seventh to fifth, while Britain as a nation ‘brand’ moved from fifth to fourth. As a good place to visit for culture, Britain also improved from fifth to fourth.
Britain was already high in the 50-nation list for a number of other categories and there was no change in perception for some of these.
This meant that after the Games, Britain was still in fourth place for tourism overall, seventh as a place people would like to visit if money was no object, fifth in being a country rich in historic buildings and monuments, and seventh in having a rich heritage culture.
The survey respondents’ overall perception of British people also remained unchanged, with Britain in fifth place.
Before the Games, the one category where Britain lagged well behind was its natural beauty. After the Games, Britain moved up from 19th to 18th in this category.
Visit Britain chief executive Sandie Dawe said: “London’s hosting of the Games, the amazing opening and closing ceremonies and the warmth of welcome shown to our international visitors have combined to boost our global image.”
Perceptions of UK
63% said the Olympics had increased their interest in visiting Britain for a holiday.
75% who saw Olympic coverage agreed they wanted to see more than London.
73% agreed that Britain offered outstanding venues for watching live sport.
70% said Britain had lovely countryside.
58% agreed that Britain had a wide variety of world cuisines on offer.