The Ups and Downs of London Visitor numbers

There’s a lot of conflicting information about regarding visitor arrival numbers in London this summer..

On the one hand we have - "London Tourism to skyrocket during the Olympics"

But on the other we have "Jactravel forecasts the a 30% Olympic hotel slump"

So what’s the real truth here?

Well, the official (that is Government line) is that travellers will be flocking to London this summer to watch and participate in the Olympics related activities with London expected to see a sharp rise in the number of foreign related travel and tourism as well as an increase in the number of Londoners who will remain at home for the Olympic games.  

London is expected to see up to a fifteen percent increase in the number of visitors it received as compared to the previous summer season. About twenty five percent of those tourists will be travelling from the U.S. and Canada. Additionally, Britons will decrease the amount of their travel abroad approximately five percent as compared to the same season last year.  

But talk to anyone involved in the inbound business and you get a different story.

JAC Travel is forecasting a slump in hotel bookings during the Olympic Games in London, with occupancy down by around 30 percent on the previous year. Their forecasts are based on a comparison of its hotel bookings at this time last year for London and other leading European cities. 

Currently, July is more than 35% down on 2011 and August is almost 30% down.  By comparison, major European cities are very substantially up, some by more than 100%. 

JacTravel’s customer base includes travel agents, tour operators and hotel booking web sites all over the world, with no particular emphasis on any one origin market and so is a good barometer for what is taking place generally.

Mario Bodini, CEO of JACtravel says: “There is a tragic irony in the numbers we are seeing. London will be a fantastic place to visit in July and August, with lots of cultural activities taking place around the Olympics, in addition to all the city’s well-known, marvellous attractions. It is a time when the place should be heaving but instead it is likely to be comparatively empty.” 

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London Tourism to skyrocket during the Olympics

Jactravel forecasts the a 30% Olympic hotel slump