Business events research

View the latest data and insights relating to business visits and events in Britain.

Introduction

The business visits and events sector is incredibly diverse – covering trade fairs, conferences and congresses, outdoor and entertainment events, as well as business tourism.

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Business Events Research & Insights Webinar 2024

The enclosed report was presented to British city stakeholders, extracting data from multiple sources from across the industry including the Event Industry Council, International Congress and Convention Association, the Size and Scale Index for Exhibitions and UK Conference and Meeting survey.

Webinar highlights

  • The direct value of the events industry was £61.65 billion to the UK economy in 2023 (UKEvents Report 2024).
  • Looking at sector performance, the Events Industry Council revealed that 2023 saw sustained growth in Business Events performance worldwide, with the UK exceeding the Western European average in RFP activity at the start of 2024. ​
  • The UK received 1.5m inbound business event visitors in 2023, spending £1.7bn. Inbound business events visits recovered to 84% of 2019 levels, faster than business travellers in general, and spending 38% more per trip than the average inbound visitor (International Passenger Survey, ONS).
  • Looking at association events specifically, the UK maintained its 6th rank from ICCA for the number of meetings hosted in 2023, recovering 69% of pre-COVID volumes, with London, Edinburgh and Glasgow hosting the most meetings within the UK.
  • The Business of Events has assessed influences on destination selection among global planners, showing that ‘cost and value’, ‘safety and security’, and ‘equity and diversity’ are most important for planners globally, while sustainability and social impact is now becoming expected for venues.
PDF

VisitBritain Business Events Research and Insights webinar 2024.pdf

July 2024

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Understanding business visits

This report was based on data from the International Passenger Survey (IPS), carried out by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) during 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2022. In those years, we asked those who visited the UK for business about their main purpose or reason for visiting the UK on business (this includes meetings, conferences and trade shows.)

Report highlights

  • Business visits accounted for 16% of all inbound visits in 2022: a total of 5.1 million visits, contributing £5.0 billion in spend (19% of all inbound spend in 2022).

  • UK business visitors had a shorter length of stay, but the average spend per night was much higher than the all-purpose average figure – making this a very valuable segment to the UK tourism industry.
  • Post-COVID recovery is underway for Business visitors, with visits reaching 59% of 2019 levels in 2022, and spend reaching 86% of 2019 levels (76% spend recovery in real terms). However, this was one of the slower recovering journey purposes in that year.
  • A significant proportion of Business visitors fall within the Business Events or MICE category (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Exhibitions). In 2022, 22% of inbound business travellers were from this sector (1.1 million), and they were the source of 29% of business spend (£1.5 billion).
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Understanding Business Visits to the UK

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Business visits to the UK by overseas residents (2022)

Business Event Type

Visits (000)

Nights (000)

Spend (£m)

Meeting one to five people

950

3,183

£934

Meeting six to 20 people

895

3,649

£1,139

MICE including:

1,112

5,102

£1,456

   - Meeting more than 21 people

361

1,628

£507

   - Incentive or team building

94

490

£139

   - Conference, convention or congress

414

1,940

£504

   - Exhibition, event or trade show

242

1,043

£305

Training or development

248

2,620

£423

Lorry driving

1,352

2,876

£183

Other

520

5,660

£745

Don’t know

73

742

£101

All business visits

5,149

23,832

£4,982

Business visitor spend and trip extension (2018)

This report focused on two main topics: expenditure by inbound business visitors to Britain, and behaviour of delegates extending their trip for leisure.

Report highlights

  • International business events attracted much higher average spend than their domestic equivalents, as international visitors stayed longer and paid higher attendance fees.
  • Delegates from outside Europe spent £1,748 on average. This compared to £990 for delegates from within Europe, and £329 for UK delegates.
  • Among those who extended their trip for leisure, the average spent £1,942. Without the extension they would have spent £991 on average.
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Business visitor spend and trip extension (2018)

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