Cheshire attractions feature in top 20 most visited list

Cheshire’s “world class” tourism gems, including two in Chester, have again proved their value to the economy after being named amongst England’s most popular paid visitor attractions.

Visit England’s newly published 2023 Annual Attractions Survey also reveals that as well as the national success, Cheshire’s much-loved attractions account for almost half of the North West’s top 20 paid visitor attractions.

Today tourism body Marketing Cheshire said the survey results demonstrate the crucial role the region’s “world-class” attractions play - not only as a source of employment but in the continued growth of a £3.41bn visitor economy that attracts 50m visitors a year.

It came after Cheshire enjoyed a double helping of success in the survey’s Top 20 Most Visited Paid Attractions in England table.

Chester Zoo is ranked third in the table, with 1,835,374 visitors alone in 2023 – a six per cent annual rise. Only the Tower of London and Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew rank higher.

It is joined in the table by Tatton Park which was ranked 20th after seeing 720,000 people – a two per cent annual rise - flock to the historic estate in Knutsford.

Cheshire also showed its popularity regionally, with an impressive eight entries in the North West’s Top 20 Most Visited Paid Attractions.

Chester Zoo (ranked third); Chester Cathedral (4th), Dunham Massey (6th), The Ice Cream Farm (eighth), Lyme Park and Gardens (10th), Quarry Bank Mill (11th) and BeWILDerwood (16th) collectively amassed just under five million annual visitors.

The region’s strong showing in the survey follows analysis published in January by Marketing Cheshire from the latest STEAM economic impact report which showed Cheshire and Warrington’s visitor economy is valued at £3.41bn.

The analysis found visitor numbers, tourism jobs and visitors continue to rise in recent years. It also showed that employment in the visitor economy also continues to rise across Cheshire with 34,998 jobs in 2022 – up 13.2 per cent on 2021.

Marketing Cheshire said the Annual Attractions Survey rankings were testament to the strength of the region’s visitor economy. And delighted officials pledged to continue working with businesses, regional and national bodies including Visit England and the new government to collectively promote a destination blessed with premium tourism attractions.

Chair of Marketing Cheshire Trevor Brocklebank said: “The high-ranking placements of Cheshire’s world class and diverse tourism offering in such a respected survey shows their continued pull. They generate billions to our economy, attracting millions of visitors each year. We will not rest on our laurels and look forward to working with the new tourism minister as Cheshire looks to be the UK’s healthiest, most sustainable, inclusive and growing economy.”

You can read the 2023 Annual Attractions Survey in full here.

Attractions in England reported an 11 per cent increase in the volume of total visits from 2022 to 2023, however this is still 28 per cent below 2019 levels.