Coastal Tourism

Domestic Coastal Tourism in 2025

Source: GBTS and GBDVS 2025

The Coast comprises a very high rate of SMEs (with less than 3% corporate brands represented)

Visitor Profile demographics:

64% of trips did not include children and 36% of trips did include children in the travel party.

47% of overnight visitors stayed in Serviced accommodation, 21% stayed in a caravan, camping or glamping site, 15% in a commercial property rental and 14% in a private home.

The average length of stay at the seaside for domestic overnight visitors was 4.3 nights. The average spend is £82 per night and £47 for a day visit.

Source: GBTS and GBDVS 2025

Key challenges facing coastal communities:

Coastal communities are facing a structural decline in domestic visitor numbers to the coast (-32% since 2022) and international visitors have not returned to pre-covid levels.

Seasonality remains a key issue for the coastal visitor economy impacting on:

• Productivity
• Investment
• Perceptions (consumers, media and government)

Climate Change – coastal storms / flooding

Business ownership and investment - Large number of micro and small businesses – difficult to coordinate and deliver change

High dependency on Tourism average 15-20% of employment - but 50%+ in places like St. Ives, Exmoor, Whitby and Newquay

Socio-economic pressures on Coastal Communities

But there are opportunities:

Growing awareness and interest in our coast through England's Coast brand to attract new audiences to our coast all year round

Addressing seasonality and attracting off peak growth markets

• International visitors
• Domestic visitors - Wellness, Slow tourism, Business Events, Under 35s, Empty nesters (over 55s) and Active Experiences

Wider sector or coastal opportunities…

• King Charles III England Coast Path

International visitors to the coast:

The last published data on International Visitors to the Coast was undertaken as part of the International Passenger Survey (IPS) in 2016. Whilst this data is now 10 years old it provides an insight into the nature and appeal of the coast to International Visitors.

In 2016:

10% visit the English coast at some point during their stay in UK

88% are on break of 4+ nights (non coastal visitors = 55% on 4+ night break)

Employment

The last detailed study of employment in the visitor economy at the Coast was undertaken in 2014. More recent studies have revealed that places such as Whitby, Exmoor and Newquay have more than 50% of their local economy reliant on the visitor economy and the average for coastal towns is between 15-20% of all employment in tourism and hospitality.

210,000 jobs worth £3.6bn (Sheffield Hallam University 2014) + 1% growth

Higher than average concentration of SMEs in coastal visitor economy with a low level of corporate brands (National Coastal Tourism Academy)

15-20% of employment in coastal towns is attributed to the visitor economy

Pre-covid-19:

Whilst the data is not directly comparable due to methodological changes in the national surveys - the below data provides a snapshot of the coastal tourism economy prior to Covid-19