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Netherlands

Netherlands

Visitor characteristics

  • Business visitors are more than four times as likely to be male than female
  • More than three in four holiday visitors are making a repeat trip to Britain (excluding British nationals, within ten years)
  • 87% of visitors in general are Dutch, while 20% of those visiting friends and/or relatives in the UK are Britons
  • 96% of departing visitors (excluding British expats) are either ‘likely’ or ‘extremely likely’ to recommend a visit to Britain

Popular activities

Sightseeing of Famous Buildings/ Monuments

Visited a Pub

Went Shopping

Global context

Measure2018
International tourism expenditure (US$bn)22.7
Global rank for international tourism expenditure14
Number of outbound visits (m)33.4
Most visited destinationFrance

Key demographic and economic data

Measure2018
Population (m)17.2
GDP per capita PPP (US$)48,979
Annual average GDP growth over past decade (%)0.9
Annual average GDP growth in the past year (%)2.6

Resources

Netherlands Market Profile (PDF, 3.3MB)

visitbritain_marketprofile_netherlands.pdf

Netherlands Market Snapshot (PDF, 257KB)

netherlands_fact_sheet_july_2019.pdf

Netherlands Aviation Profile (PDF, 443KB)

netherlands_aviation_profile_20190613.pdf

More resources

Find out where visitors from the Netherlands to the UK reside in their own country (Excel, 212KB, Published 2008 and 2014)

annual_states_of_residence_2018_for_web.xlsx

Read about the preferences of Europeans towards tourism (PDF, 1.65MB, Published March 2015)

2015-3 Preferences of Europeans towards tourism_23.pdf

Read about the perceptions of the UK held by Dutch respondents (PDF, 435KB, Published March 2019)

how_the_dutch_view_the_uk_2018.pdf

Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.1852 EUR

As of 24 January 2020

Retrieved from the Bank of England

Inbound visits to Britain from Netherlands

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Number of visits

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Total nights spent

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Average spend per visit (GBP)

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What the Dutch think about Britain

  • The Dutch rate the UK highly for 'culture' in general, 'contemporary culture', 'sport', 'historic buildings', 'cultural heritage', and 'vibrant cities' out of 50 countries in 2019
  • Music and films are the most are the cultural products or services most strongly associated with the UK among the Dutch
  • Amongst the most important reasons for choosing Britain as a holiday destination, Dutch respondents stated ‘cultural attractions’, ‘vibrant cities’ and the ‘countryside/natural beauty’ followed by a ‘good deal’ and ‘visiting friends and/or relatives’
  • Areas of strength for Britain include the provision of ‘good entertainment and nightlife’, ‘watching sporting events’, ‘the ease of getting around’, ‘the atmosphere’ and ‘good shopping’.
  • Activities that appeal to potential Dutch visitors include 'spotting wildlife in the Scottish Highlands', 'enjoying a traditional afternoon tea', 'taking a canal boat tour through the waterways of England', 'riding the scenic 'Hogwarts Express' (Harry Potter train) through the Scottish Highlands' and 'walking along Hadrian's Wall in Northern England'

Caring for visitors

  • There is an overall preference for small-scale (family run) hotels with character and traditional decoration and furniture, preferably in a nice countryside village
  • British gastropubs are a good option for the Dutch as they enjoy the atmosphere of a traditional pub and food is good value for money
  • Having a traditional afternoon tea is often high on the wish list while visiting Britain
  • Many Dutch holiday visitors tend to start thinking about their trip early with about one in three doing this as early as half a year or more in advance, but more than half of Dutch bookings happened within two months before the trip.

The leisure & travel trade

  • The Dutch travel trade is made up of tour operators, coach operators and travel agents, as well group travel organisers such as schools, night schools and associations
  • Dutch consumers are very independent and Britain is a familiar country to them which means that quite a few consumers book their holidays direct
  • Sea carriers such as P&O Ferries, Stena Line and DFDS Seaways are very strong brands in the Netherlands and they also offer accommodation and short breaks usually in cooperation with a tour operator
  • The Dutch value their private life and tend not to be very keen to go out for business dinners

 

Access to Britain from the Netherlands

Measure2018
Weekly aircraft departures968
Weekly seat capacity126,959
Airports with direct routes in the Netherlands4
Airports with direct routes in Britain26
Weekly ferry crossings28
Non-stop Eurostar trains per day to Amsterdam3
  • It is straightforward to reach Britain from the Netherlands by sea, plane, coach, or train, but the majority of visitors travel by air
  • Airline seat capacity has remained broadly stable year-on-year in comparison to 2017
  • There is excellent access to all parts of Britain from the Netherlands but the highest capacity is on routes from Amsterdam to London area airports
  • Those departing Britain by air for the Netherlands are charged £13 in Air Passenger Duty

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