The Brexit tourist boom to Britain is on

[Blackleaf]

During the EU in/out referendum campaign, much of the Remainers' Project Fear medicine focused on what it might mean for British tourists heading overseas; the answer could be largely summarised as all doom and gloom.

Now, a month on from the June 23rd vote, British tourism is booming....

Coffee House

The Brexit tourist boom to Britain is on

Tom Goodenough

Tom Goodenough
8 August 2016
The Spectator

We were warned during the referendum run-up that Brexit could be a disaster for tourism. Much of the Project Fear medicine focused on what it might mean for British tourists heading overseas; the answer could be largely summarised as all doom and gloom. Abta, for instance, warned that ‘a Brexit could…affect the flow of trade and travel’. In short, the message was clear: Brexit was bad news for the travel industry. But what we heard less about was how the referendum might affect the numbers actually heading to Britain. Now, a month on from the June 23rd vote, we have the answer: British tourism is booming.

In July, bookings for flights landing in the UK went up by more than seven per cent compared to the month before the referendum. What’s more, when you compare the number of tourists arranging holidays to visit the UK this year compared to the same time in 2015, the figures are 4.3 per cent up. The drop in sterling has undoubtedly helped encourage more tourists to visit Britain, with more pounds for your Yen, Yuan or Euro an extra incentive to come to the UK.

But these figures suggest more than just a short-term blip attributable to a favourable exchange rate. Take longer-term bookings, for example, and you see that in September and October, the numbers heading to the UK are up by 3.3 per cent and 5.3 per cent each (compared to the same months in 2015). By then, sterling is likely to have settled considerably, suggesting this boom is not only about more bang for foreign tourists’ bucks.

For an industry which has sometimes struggled over recent years, these figures are worth celebrating. It’s also interesting to point out that this tourist boom is not isolated to any particular country, which might make it more of an aberration. In reality, it’s much more global than that; those from EU countries are booking five per cent more holidays to the UK in the aftermath of the referendum than during the run-up, according to the figures released by ForwardKeys. Whilst for tourists from outside Europe, the figures are up by an impressive 8.7 per cent. Not for the first time, Project Fear appears to have been predictably overhyped.

The Brexit tourist boom to Britain is on | Coffee House

 

[Bar Sinister]

During the EU in/out referendum campaign, much of the Remainers' Project Fear medicine focused on what it might mean for British tourists heading overseas; the answer could be largely summarised as all doom and gloom.

Now, a month on from the June 23rd vote, British tourism is booming....

Coffee House

The Brexit tourist boom to Britain is on

Tom Goodenough

Tom Goodenough
8 August 2016
The Spectator

We were warned during the referendum run-up that Brexit could be a disaster for tourism. Much of the Project Fear medicine focused on what it might mean for British tourists heading overseas; the answer could be largely summarised as all doom and gloom. Abta, for instance, warned that ‘a Brexit could…affect the flow of trade and travel’. In short, the message was clear: Brexit was bad news for the travel industry. But what we heard less about was how the referendum might affect the numbers actually heading to Britain. Now, a month on from the June 23rd vote, we have the answer: British tourism is booming.

In July, bookings for flights landing in the UK went up by more than seven per cent compared to the month before the referendum. What’s more, when you compare the number of tourists arranging holidays to visit the UK this year compared to the same time in 2015, the figures are 4.3 per cent up. The drop in sterling has undoubtedly helped encourage more tourists to visit Britain, with more pounds for your Yen, Yuan or Euro an extra incentive to come to the UK.

But these figures suggest more than just a short-term blip attributable to a favourable exchange rate. Take longer-term bookings, for example, and you see that in September and October, the numbers heading to the UK are up by 3.3 per cent and 5.3 per cent each (compared to the same months in 2015). By then, sterling is likely to have settled considerably, suggesting this boom is not only about more bang for foreign tourists’ bucks.

For an industry which has sometimes struggled over recent years, these figures are worth celebrating. It’s also interesting to point out that this tourist boom is not isolated to any particular country, which might make it more of an aberration. In reality, it’s much more global than that; those from EU countries are booking five per cent more holidays to the UK in the aftermath of the referendum than during the run-up, according to the figures released by ForwardKeys. Whilst for tourists from outside Europe, the figures are up by an impressive 8.7 per cent. Not for the first time, Project Fear appears to have been predictably overhyped.

The Brexit tourist boom to Britain is on | Coffee House

Isn't this article actually the opposite of your introductory statement? This is about tourists heading into Britain, not Brits heading toward EU countries. I am wondering how separation from the EU will affect the two million Brits that have holiday and retirement properties in the EU.

 

[Blackleaf]

Isn't this article actually the opposite of your introductory statement? This is about tourists heading into Britain, not Brits heading toward EU countries. I am wondering how separation from the EU will affect the two million Brits that have holiday and retirement properties in the EU.

It won't affect them at all, for at least three reasons:

1) Any EU country kicking out the British expats would just be met by recicropal action from Britain, with Britain kicking out that country's expats;

2) Mass expulsions of citizens from another developed economy would startle foreign investors and potentially cause economic turmoil in the expelling country;

3) Many lawyers argue that British expats living elsewhere in the EU at the time of Brexit would have individual "acquired rights" under international law. This is based on the Vienna Convention of 1969, which says that the termination of a treaty "does not affect any right, obligation or legal situation of the parties created through the execution of the treaty prior to its termination."