Global travel attractions were valued at USD 254,6 billion in 2017, bringing the attention of over 14,8 billion people. Visitor attractions in China, USA, Japan, France, Germany, United Kingdom and Russia draw the most people each year, with nearly 11 billion visitors.
In celebration of International Museum Day, taking place on May 18th, use Euromonitor International’s visitor attraction rankings to find out if museums make it into the list of leading visitor attractions in these key markets.
Leading Visitor Attractions, 2017 (Number of Visitors, '000) |
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| China | Great Wall | 70,381.2 |
| Guilin | 63,553.3 | |
| Beijing Olympic Park | 60,287.8 | |
| The Temple of Heaven | 53,605.2 | |
| Hangzhou Song Danasty Theme Park | 36,000.0 | |
| Shenzhen Overseas Chinese Town | 33,664.8 | |
| Japan | Tokyo Disney Resort | 30,154.0 |
| Universal Studio Japan | 14,768.3 | |
| Nagashima Resort | 5,948.0 | |
| Tokyo Sky Tree Observation Deck | 5,662.1 | |
| Yokohama Hakkei Sea Paradise | 3,942.2 | |
| Aso Farmland | 3,940.5 | |
| Russia | The State Peterhof Museum | 5,010.0 |
| The State Museum St Isaac's Cathedral | 3,901.0 | |
| The State Hermitage Museum | 3,700.0 | |
| The State Museum-Reserve Tsarskoe Selo | 3,000.0 | |
| The Kazan Kremlin | 2,850.0 | |
| The Moscow Kremlin | 2,550.0 | |
| USA | Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World | 20,408.8 |
| Disneyland | 19,625.2 | |
| Blue Ridge Parkway | 15,701.4 | |
| Golden Gate National Recreation Area | 15,528.2 | |
| George Washington Memorial Parkway | 11,252.4 | |
| Great Smoky Mountains National Park | 11,172.9 | |
| France | Disneyland Paris | 13,389.0 |
| Musee du Louvre | 7,343.7 | |
| Tour Eiffel | 6,104.0 | |
| Château de Versailles | 5,189.0 | |
| Cité des Sciences de la Villette | 3,714.0 | |
| Centre Pompidou | 3,475.2 | |
| Germany | Europa-Park Rust | 5,678.9 |
| Cologne Cathedral | 5,033.6 | |
| Reichstag, Berlin | 3,922.8 | |
| Drosselgasse Rüdesheim | 3,295.8 | |
| Bonner Museumsmeile | 2,362.6 | |
| Frauenkirche, Dresden | 2,157.8 | |
| United Kingdom | National Gallery | 6,560.0 |
| British Museum | 6,259.9 | |
| Tate Modern | 6,189.6 | |
| Blackpool Pleasure Beach | 5,447.3 | |
| Natural History Museum | 4,392.9 | |
| Somerset House | 3,649.8 | |
Embracing technology: bring in the Millennials
A key strategy to bring more traffic to museums has been to increase the appeal to Millennials. Those born between 1980 and 2000 are the fastest-growing demographic of travellers and therefore represent an increasingly lucrative market to attract. Furthermore, Millennials increasingly share values and characteristics across cultures, so, when targeted, museums can create a global appeal. Companies such as Lava Lab, based in Amsterdam, have sought to make museum experiences as interactive as possible with the use of apps, social media and virtual reality. Innovations for the Van Gogh Museum and Amsterdam Museum, such as sending push notifications to handheld devices when visitors walk past exhibits, has strengthened the allure to this tech-minded demographic.
The UK museum industry is viewed as a pioneer in embracing technology. Government-funded national museums such as The British Museum, V&A and Tate Galleries publish and incorporate digital strategies as an essential part of their operations. Wearable technologies such as Google Cardboard and Oculus Rift are increasingly used to create a more immersive experience and offer a greater connection with the exhibits.
Similarly, placing collections online and offering virtual tours have opened up the buildings and exhibits to a global audience, thereby increasing their appeal as a destination for travellers. This has been compounded by measures such as the relaxation of photography rules and the introduction of free Wi-Fi to allow visitors to share their experiences, whilst simultaneously marketing the museums.