Visitor numbers to London’s West End set to soar this Christmas

Visitor numbers to London are set to reach an all-time high, with predictions of 40 million visitors flocking to London’s West End over the festive season, and retail sales forecasted to increase by up to 7 percent*.

This rise in visitor figures is supported by recent news from Transport for London (TfL) who revealed that last week was the busiest on record for the Tube, with 28.3 million journeys made across seven days.

VisitLondon.com, the official city guide, in conjunction with West End partners and @London Instagram, is celebrating another successful year for the capital by launching its own Christmas video to showcase the capital in a unique way.

The video, entitled ‘A Christmas Story’ explores London through the eyes of a child and a free-runner, played by Champion free-runner Tim Shieff, as they make different journeys into the heart of London against a backdrop of iconic West End Christmas locations including Regent Street, Bond Street, Oxford Street, and Carnaby Street, featuring festive shots of Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus and other famous locations.

VisitLondon.com worked with video production company Fruitmedia and influential Instagramer @London to organise and film an Instagram gathering (instameet) in Trafalgar Square for the final scene.

Director of VisitLondon.com, Julie Chappell, comments, “We are thrilled to be able to showcase the festive magic of London with this innovative film, and working with @London Instagram has allowed us to bring together a social media community to tell London’s ‘Christmas Story’ to the rest of the world.

“VisitLondon.com continues to be a vital tool for millions of visitors to the city, and it’s great that we are able to bring London to life with this exciting and creative collaboration – it’s the perfect way to end what is set to be another record-breaking year for London’s visitor economy, with visitor figures for 2014 projected at a whopping 18.7 million international visitors.”

Karen Baines, Head of Marketing & Communications – Heart of London Business Alliance, said, “It’s fantastic to see the dazzling lights and bustling streets of London’s West End brought to life in such a creative way. This film encapsulates the visitor experience of exploring this wonderfully festive area, famous for shopping, entertainment, dining and culture.”