New official figures show that the Leicester and Leicestershire visitor economy has grown by 15.5% in the last year and is now worth almost £2.4 billion per year!

The tourism figures for Leicester and Leicestershire are taken from the 2023 Scarborough Tourism Economic Activity Monitor (STEAM) survey which is an independent assessment of the tourism industry and its impact on the wider economy. With Visit Leicester’s status as the official Tourism Organisation for the city and county supported by Visit England, we have the potential to see this grow even more as we take advantage of the opportunities it will offer.

This figure relates to activity in 2023 and the figure of £2.391 billion is up by 15.5% on the 2022 figure of £2.070 billion.

This is thanks to more than 31.28 million people visiting the city and county in 2023, an increase of 2.46% on the previous year’s figure of 30.53 million. Of these numbers, the county welcomed 21.04 million visitors whilst 10.24 million visited the city. The number of visitor days rose to 38.53 million, up 2.34% on the 2022 figure of 37.65 million – with 24.62 million visitor days in the county and 13.91 million in the city during 2023.

The new figures also show that the number of tourism-related jobs is inceasing, with more than 22,923 people now employed in the visitor economy across the city and the county – an increase of 8.96% on 2022.

This is also up on pre-COVID pandemic (2019) figures, when visitor numbers for the city and county totalled 35.37 million, the economic impact was £1.962 billion and 22,714 people were employed in the sector.

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Results praised by local leaders

The positive tourism results have been welcomed by City Mayor Peter Soulsby and County Council Acting Leader, Deborah Taylor.

Leicester City Mayor Peter Soulsby said: “The economic value of tourism in Leicester continues to grow which is excellent news. The growth we’ve seen in tourism-related jobs gives a huge boost to our economy, as do the millions of visitors who come here and spend their money with local businesses. These figures show that our investment in making the city centre an attractive place that’s easy to get around has been well worth it. They also reflect the hard work of everyone involved in the tourism and hospitality sector in our city.”

Leicestershire County Council acting leader, Deborah Taylor, said: “This is great news and shows that the city and county are on the up. Whether it’s discovering history, tasting world-famous cuisine or trying more active escapes such as kayaking, we are a top visitor destination. And with 21 million people visiting the county last year, spending money in hotels, restaurants, attractions and local shops, enabling businesses to grow and more jobs to be created, it’s an important boost for our local economy. 

“Leicestershire is an excellent place to live, invest and visit and I’m pleased that more people are enjoying the wealth of attractions on our doorstep.”

Erika Hardy, Chair of the Tourism Advisory Board for Leicester and Leicestershire, said: “We welcome this new data which is further evidence to prove that we have a thriving and vibrant tourism and hospitality sector locally, full of people passionate about our city and county. The campaigns run over recent years to promote Leicester and Leicestershire as a fantastic destination for visitors have really highlighted the huge number of reasons to visit."