Admissions to England’s visitor attractions rose by 5 per cent in 2009 according to VisitEngland’s Annual Survey of Visits to Visitor Attractions. Last year, overnight domestic holiday trips to England increased significantly, a boost that has clearly benefited attractions around the whole country.

All categories showed growth last year with historic houses & castles topping the bill with a 12 per cent increase followed by gardens which grew by 10 per cent. Attractions in rural locations (+7 per cent) out performed those in coastal (+3 per cent) and urban destinations (+3).

Nine out of ten of England’s top free attractions were either a museum or art gallery with the British Museum maintaining its top spot with just under 5.6 million visitors. London’s National Gallery, Tate Modern, Natural History Museum and Science Museum followed closely behind. Regional museums also featured in the top twenty free attractions including the Merseyside Maritime Museum, National Railway Museum (Yorkshire), Museums Sheffield: Millennium Gallery and Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery.

The Tower of London topped the paid for category with 2.4 million visits. Other attractions featured in the top ten include, St Paul’s Cathedral, Windermere Lake Cruises, Chester Zoo, London Zoo and the Eden Project. In a departure from recent years, visits to paid attractions (+7 per cent) increased at a notably stronger rate than visits to free attractions (+3 per cent).

Visits to attractions across almost all regions were up with the strongest growth recorded in the South East (+10 per cent) and the East Midlands (+9 per cent).

James Berresford Chief Executive VisitEngland commented: “Our job at VisitEngland is to inspire Brits and international visitors alike to enjoy every minute in this wonderful country. Our attractions are world class, whether you’re looking for a zoo, a historical gem, a theme park or one of our beautiful gardens. This latest report shows a strong trend towards day trips, with attractions reporting an 8 per cent increase in visitors who live locally. Wherever we live in the country, we are never far away from some amazing attractions offering a great day out for the whole family.”