Inbound market profiles, traveller types, destination trends and new openings - key intelligence to help you sell Bath & Bristol to your clients.
How we engage international markets
Our focus is on maintaining, managing and maximising established markets where visitors are already coming from, while also exploring emerging markets and capitalising on opportunities to engage.
We reach these audiences directly through a combination of media and PR work alongside partnerships and travel trade engagement, to ensure any interest gained can be acted upon and, crucially, booked easily.
We work with VisitBritain and others, to attend sales missions, host familiarisation visits, and distribute relevant updates to the in-market travel trade. We also work closely with UK-based DMCs to enable bookability for the international travel trade.
We work with Bristol Airport to support new and existing flight routes with a propensity for inbound travellers, as well as GWR for rail connections from other airports and key destinations.
International key markets
Primary markets
- Short Haul: Germany (with Switzerland/Austria), France, Spain, Ireland
- Long Haul: USA, Australia, Canada
Emerging markets
- Short Haul: Nordics, Netherlands, Italy
- Long Haul: China, India, South Korea, GCC (Gulf Cooperation Council)
Market profiles
For more information about our work with the travel trade and local businesses, see our travel trade pages on the Visit West website. If you would like market-specific advice or information, please get in touch with us directly.
North American visitors
Visitors from USA and Canada rank first and third respectively in international overnight stays in Bath. USA is third for Bristol and Canada is in the top ten inbound markets.
Visitors from these markets love the variety of things to do and historic links of the region along with the proximity to areas like the Cotswolds, South Wales and even Oxfordshire, meaning a hub and spoke itinerary is easily achievable. There are many operators running day trips for FIT and groups, including Rabbies and In & Beyond Bath. Private hires for luxury are also available with operators such as Galahad Tours.
Access is transformed by using flight routes via Dublin with Aer Lingus and their codeshare partners (including American Airlines, United, JetBlue, and British Airways). Multiple daily connecting flights to Bristol Airport (BRS) mean North American visitors can then arrive as domestic passengers to the UK by clearing immigration in Dublin.
Bristol Airport is big enough for the connections, but also small enough to be navigable relatively quickly. Even with a short wait for luggage, passengers can be in Bristol city centre within an hour of landing, saving valuable itinerary time and meaning more holiday for your clients. This route also makes a two-centre holiday combining the Republic of Ireland and the West of England highly achievable.
German (including Austria & Switzerland) visitors
Bristol, Bath and beyond have often been an overnight stop-off point for German touring groups on their way to Cornwall for a Rosamund Pilcher itinerary. Over the last decade, this region has become more of a destination in its own right for this market.
Attracted by the culture, events and experiences available in Bristol, Bath and beyond, German-speaking visitors can take advantage of multiple flight routes to Bristol Airport for direct access. Even touring groups are now spending more time in the region instead of using it simply as an overnight stop.
Germany has consistently been in the top two inbound markets for Bristol and with new flight routes emerging, Switzerland is now in the top ten regionally.
Australian visitors
Visitors from Australia are on an upward trend to Bristol, Bath and beyond. Visitors are attracted by the proximity of some must-visit attractions like Stonehenge, the Roman Baths and SS Great Britain at Bristol Dockyards, combined with the contemporary culture of events, street art and great food and drink.
There are a great-many historic links between this region and Australia, with huge numbers of Australians being able to trace their ancestry back to someone travelling from the UK on the SS Great Britain. The first Governor of New South Wales was from Bath, and this link continues with the city being twinned with Manly, NSW.
Access for this market is likely from London Heathrow (LHR) Airport, however connecting flights from hubs in mainland Europe are plentiful meaning easy access to or from Bristol Airport on a twin-destination European trip.
