13 December 2007
VisitBritain was named the World’s Leading Tourism Authority Internet Site at the World Travel Awards yesterday (12 December 2007) by more than 200,000 travel and tourism professionals for its international consumer website, www.visitbritain.com.
VisitBritain was named the World’s Leading Tourism Authority Internet Site at the World Travel Awards yesterday (12 December 2007) by more than 200,000 travel and tourism professionals for its international consumer website, www.visitbritain.com. This is the fourth time that the website has won the global award.
Commenting on VisitBritain’s success, Tom Wright said: “I am delighted at this recognition of VisitBritain’s world-class performance. Travel and tourism is widely acknowledged as the biggest industry in the world and is vitally important to the UK’s national economy. Over the past year, www.visitbritain.com has been redesigned and developed to improve our overall website experience to meet the needs of users in all stages of their holidaying process - look, book, travel, stay, tell and keep in touch. To be awarded the title of the World’s Leading Tourism Authority Internet Site is a fantastic achievement, and we intend to continue to utilise digital marketing to its full potential in 2008 and beyond.”
Recognising the growing popularity of experiential travel, hundreds of pages of new content have been introduced to the website this year to cover interests such as shopping, sport, luxury & relaxation and history & heritage. A new series of themed itineraries, including cycling, canal tours and film-based itineraries, provides an excellent guide for people looking for more detailed recommendations. In addition, there is a dedicated section on budget travel and over 250 pages dedicated to transport in and to Britain as well as practical travel information. Commercial elements, including a flight search engine and online taxi booking service let visitors arrange essential elements of their visit in advance. Bookable Oyster cards and VisitBritain's Great British Heritage Passes also enable visitors to get the best value for money from their holiday experience in Britain.
VisitBritain is responsible for promoting Britain as a world class tourist destination and for developing England’s visitor economy. It has representatives in 36 countries around the world and, in the last three years, has expanded into China, throughout Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia, and increased its presence in India with representatives in Bangalore and Mumbai.
The global showcase of excellence, the 14th annual World Travel Awards acknowledge, reward and celebrate the enormous achievements to be found in every sector of the travel and tourism industry. The voting was undertaken by travel professionals worldwide, including more than 110,000 travel agents.
For further information contact:
SianBrenchley, Press Officer, VisitBritain on 020 8563 3220 or 07971 497047
Notes to editors
· VisitBritain is responsible for promoting Britain as a world class tourist destination and for developing England’s visitor economy. It has representatives in 36 countries around the world and, in the last three years, has expanded into China, throughout Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia, and increased its presence in India with representatives in Bangalore and Mumbai.
· In 2006, there were 32.7 million visits to Britain, 9% up on 2005. They spent over £16 billion in the UK: a 12% increase on 2005.Globally, the UK retains 6th place in visitor arrivals, slipping one place to 6th in spend.
· An archive of media releases, information on VisitBritain's marketing activities, print quality, free-to-download images and more details about the work of VisitBritain in promoting Britain as a destination, can be found on VisitBritain’s online press centre, www.visitbritain.com/presscentre