TORONTO — More than 120 international travel trade buyers are headed to Britain for a series of education visits across the country.

Starting Jan. 28, the three- to five-day itineraries in destinations across England, Wales and Scotland will showcase the latest tourism products to buyers from 16 international markets. These include representatives from the UK’s three largest inbound markets – United States, France and Germany – as well as Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Japan, the Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) countries, India, Italy, the Netherlands, the Nordic countries, South Korea and Spain.

Speaking on the Canadian market, Paul Gauger, VisitBritain’s Executive Vice President, The Americas, Australia & New Zealand, said: “Canada is an incredibly important market for the UK for inbound tourism. Working closely with international travel trade is crucial to selling travel to Britain, and we look forward to continuing our work and building towards a strong recovery in 2023.

“We are delighted for this opportunity to bring together many of our industry partners to share updates and offer firsthand experiences of the outstanding and varied tourism products on offer in Britain.”

VisitBritain’s in-country teams have partnered with destination management organizations and companies across England, Scotland and Wales to develop itineraries tailored to each market.

All itineraries include London before buyers embark on visits to destinations like: Manchester, Liverpool and the Lake District; Bath, Bristol and the Cotswolds; Newcastle and Northumberland; Cambridge; Somerset; the West Midlands; the English Wine Region; Edinburgh; Cardiff and other regions of Scotland and Wales. 

The educational trade visits are part of the national tourism agency’s ‘Showcase Britain’ event, which kicks off Jan. 26 with a networking event for the international buyers and travel media at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London. Buyers will be officially welcomed by VisitBritain Chairman Nick de Bois CBE.

Before heading off on their educational tours, buyers will also attend the ‘Britain and Ireland Marketplace’ (BIM) on Jan. 27 for a full day of appointments with tourism suppliers and destinations from across Britain. 

The educational visits come as VisitBritain also prepares to host its flagship global trade event, ExploreGB Virtual, from Feb. 27 to March 2. The agency’s new ‘GREAT Britain’ marketing campaign will also be launching in February to drive bookings and invite visitors to ‘See Things Differently’ in the destination. The campaign will be highlighting major events in 2023 including the Coronation of King Charles III in May and the Eurovision Song Contest in Liverpool, on behalf of Ukraine, also in May.

This year, VisitBritain is forecasting 35.1 million inbound visits to the UK, 86% of 2019 levels and 18% higher than levels seen in 2022. Its forecast for overseas visitor spending in the UK this year is £29.5 billion, a projected record high for annual inbound visitor spend.

For more information about inbound tourism go to here: https://www.visitbritain.org/2023-tourism-forecast.

For more information on events in Britain in 2023 go to https://www.visitbritain.com/en/how-see-things-differently-britain-2023.