KEY POLICY AREA

Tourism & the 
Visitor Economy

The luxury sector is a key driver of inbound tourism and plays a vital role in the appeal of the UK to international visitors. In 2022, Walpole published its Tourism Report which examined the value of the high-end visitor economy and outlined the steps needed to keep the UK competitive.
This report found that high-end visitors :
typically spend
14x
more than the average visitor
amounting to circa
£30bn
in economic value
£1 spent by those staying in high-end accommodation in the UK generates £8 of value in other industries, such as culture, entertainment and luxury shopping, which in turn supports hundreds of thousands of jobs across the UK.

Walpole supports the growth of the tourism and visitor economy through our work with Government departments, the GREAT Campaign and our wide range of partners. We advise Government and others on promoting the UK abroad, and undertake trade missions overseas to encourage high spending international visitors to come to the UK.
Walpole is calling on the Government to:
01
Introduce a new, reformed, digital Tax-Free Shopping scheme for Great Britain to unleash a tourism and shopping boom
02
Reform visitor visas to make entry into the UK as frictionless as possible
03
Reduce Sunday trading restrictions in London’s international centres
04
Reform working visas to address the hospitality workforce shortage
05
Introduce a new Government backed marketing initiative to drive international visitors

Read our Tourism Report

Walpole consistently raises issues with ministers, civil servants and other politicians. If you want to help us do so, please let us know.