Definitions
To qualify as an eligible GB domestic overnight trip, visitors had to have:
- stayed at least one night in the nations of Great Britain
- take trips on an infrequent basis (i.e. less than once a week)
| Term |
Definition |
| GB domestic overnight holiday trips |
The main purpose of the trip was for holiday, pleasure or leisure. |
| GB domestic overnight "visiting friends and relatives" trips |
The main purpose of the trip was for visiting friends and relatives, including such trips that visitors combined with a holiday. |
| GB domestic overnight business trips |
The main purpose of the trip was for business. |
| GB domestic overnight miscellaneous trips |
The main purpose of the trip was for any other type of trip taken not covered by the previous classifications. These include: personal events, public events, study, medical, religious reasons, any overnight stays in the UK as part of any overseas trip. |
| Volume |
An estimate of the grossed-up number of overnight trips if the sample would be representative of the whole GB population. |
| Value |
An estimate of the total expenditure if the sample would be representative of the whole GB population. |
| Bednights |
An estimate of the grossed-up number of nights spent on overnight trips if the sample would be representative of the whole GB population. |
These criteria and definitions have been revised to align with agreed international standards. This impacts on comparability of the domestic overnight tourism estimates from 2021 onwards from those published in 2019 and previous years.
Methodology
The Great Britain Tourism Survey (GBTS) is a national consumer survey. It measures the volume and value of domestic overnight tourism trips taken by residents of Great Britain.
Data is gathered via an online survey. Results are weighted to provide an nationally representative estimation of overnight tourism volume and value. Further detail on methodology can be found in the latest background and quality report to download on this page.
In 2019, the producers of the domestic tourist statistics undertook a review of the requirements and methods for producing the statistics. This was to help future-proof the data collection methods.
Results published from April 2021 onwards are not directly comparable with data published for 2019 and previous years because:
- statistics from 2021 onwards are based on a new combined survey
- changes in survey methodology were introduced in 2021, together with the interruption in data collection due to coronavirus (COVID-19)
The target annual sample size for GBTS is 60,000 completed interviews for Great Britain.
