USA

USA

The International Passenger Survey (IPS) was suspended on 16 March 2020 due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic until the start of 2021. The ONS have made every effort to produce high-quality estimates for the periods when IPS data is not being collected but have not been able to produce a full set of results. See the 2020 inbound page for more information. Data for 2021 and 2022 was also impacted by COVID-19, more information can be found on the About IPS page.

Due to the above, the latest full year IPS data below is from 2019. You can access data detailed data from 2020 onwards on the latest annual page.

Visitor characteristics

New York Tri-State and California generate the most visits with the two areas representing over a third of all visits from the USA to the UK
Almost 6 out of 10 American holiday visitors are making a repeat visit
Holiday visits continue to lead in terms of volume of visits from the American market (49% of visits)
London is the leading destination for a trip to the UK with 49% of visitor nights spent there

Popular activities for American visitors while in the UK

Dining in a restaurant

Sightseeing of Famous Buildings/ Monuments

Went Shopping

Global context


Measure	2019
International tourism expenditure (US$bn)	152.3
Global rank for international tourism expenditure	2
Number of outbound visits (m)	127.4
Most visited destination	Mexico
Most visited destination in Western Europe	Italy

Key demographic and economic data


Measure	2021
Population (m)	332.2
GDP per capita PPP (US$)	61,044
Annual average GDP growth over past decade (%)	2.0
Annual GDP growth (%)	5.7

USA Market and Trade Profile (PDF, 3.1 MB)

USA Market Snapshot (PDF, 1.94MB)

USA Aviation Profile (PDF, 2.5MB)

USA COVID-19 Travel Sentiment (PDF, 500KB, Published April 2022)

Read the report on North American LGBTQ travel to Britain (PDF, 2.3MB, Published March 2019)

Find out where visitors from the USA reside in their own country (Excel, 176KB, Published 2019)

Find out more about the international travel behaviour and perceptions of Britain among international travellers from California and the New York Tri-State (PDF, 903 KB, Published February 2018)

Look at the role of social media in the context of overseas holidays from the USA. (PDF, 794KB, Published 2015)

Uncover insights about the international travel behaviour of Hispanics living in the US, their sentiment towards Britain and a select number of competitor destinations (PDF, 0.4MB, Published April 2013)

Read the report on the US Hispanic population and their travel behaviour (PDF, 1.6MB, Published September 2012)

Please note that the reports below have not been updated with the 2009-2018 revised IPS data. For more information, please visit about the international passenger survey

Read more about the role and the perception of the UK's culture and heritage in the USA (PDF, 2.4MB, Published December 2014)

Find out what perceptions of Britain stop Americans exploring outside of London (PDF, 0.9MB, Published July 2013)

Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.2462 USD

As of 7 June 2023

Retrieved from the Bank of England

Inbound visits to Britain from USA

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Number of visits

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Total expenditure (GBP)

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Total nights spent

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Average length of stay (Nights)

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Average spend per visit (GBP)

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What Americans think about Britain

Americans have a very upbeat perception of Britain as they ranked Britain 3rd overall among 60 nations
Americans rate Britain highly for city life, contemporary culture, and sport
Museums are the cultural product that is most strongly associated with Britain among Americans
Words associated with Britain by Americans include ‘educational’, ‘fascinating’, ‘exciting’, and ‘relaxing’

Caring for visitors

As many will arrive in Britain on overnight flights from the US, consideration for early check-in at hotels/accommodation is always appreciated
Americans will want to stay in a 3-star plus property in a good/central location
Americans are used to larger rooms than are generally found in Britain as well as larger beds and having private bathrooms
Americans are very comfortable paying for goods and services with a credit card

The leisure & travel trade

The travel trade structure in the US is made up of tour operators, online travel agents (OTAs) and front-line retail travel advisors. The market is experiencing growth in the Home Based Travel advisor community; often affiliated to a travel agent consortia
Generally allow a minimum lead time of two years for product to appear in a fully escorted tour, with a shorter planning cycle of six months to a year for FIT/independent travel
Some independent operators will develop product at various times throughout the year as many no longer publish printed brochures
Contracting for the following year can start any time from the fall (World Travel Market) through until June

Access to Britain from the USA


Measure	2019
Weekly aircraft departures	936
Weekly seat capacity	257,331
Airports with direct routes in the USA	36
Airports with direct routes in Britain	13

Most visitors depart the UK by air (87%), another 11% leave through the Channel Tunnel
36 airports in the USA were connected to the UK via direct flights, in 2019
In 2019, London Heathrow had 75% of seat capacity from the USA to the UK
Seat capacity from the USA to the UK has increased by 21% from 2014-2019
The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic led to a 70% reduction in seat capacity from the US to the UK in 2020

Markets