A recent study, commissioned by business group London First in partnership with the London Mayor’s promotion body, has revealed that destinations just outside what is considered central London are becoming ever more popular with tourists. These emerging areas, often associated with a strong food and beverage scene, are starting to attract foreign visitors in large numbers, according to this report.
Included on the list are fashionable Rye Lane in Peckham, Hackney’s Broadway Market, Maltby Street Market and the Beer Mile in Bermondsey, Columbia Road Flower Marker in the East End, and Turnham Green in Chiswick, where Sipsmith’s artisan gin distillery is the top local draw.
Historical and cultural destinations such as Eltham Palace, whose Art Deco interiors featured in The Crown, were also highlighted.
The study warned that far more tourists will have to be lured outside the centre of London to relieve the pressure on traditional destinations, pointing out that more than three quarters of all spending by foreign visitors in the capital is still concentrated in the central boroughs of Kensington & Chelsea and Westminster. It said that a forecast of a 30 per cent increase in the number of arrivals by 2025 is likely to put more pressure on parts of central London.
It seems that the challenge for the tourism industry and tour operators is to persuade visitors to stay longer in the city and explore beyond the well-trodden tourist trail.