Posted on July 23, 2010 by Fiona Hilliard

UK cities Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow are fast catching up on London and Edinburgh when it comes to popularity in the city break stakes.

What were once dank reminders of the industrial revolution are now wearing a new ‘hip and fashionable’ crown according to VisitBritain’s latest survey.

Even though London and Edinburgh are still considered Britain’s most popular short break destinations, Manchester, Birmingham and Glasgow look to be gaining ground.

VisitBritain says the change in attitude is down to people visiting the cities while on business and then being ‘pleasantly surprised’ by what they find and deciding to return for a longer break.

According to the survey, London is the top destination for international tourists with an average of 15 million overseas visitors staying overnight in each of the last four years, followed closely by Edinburgh with 1.3 million visitors.  The data is based on the number of overnight stays by foreign visitors to UK cities between 2006 and 2009.

Manchester with its Imperial War Museum and Lowry Centre in nearby Salford has long offered a vibrant art and culture scene and world class sports attractions. The city finished in third place with around 900,000 international visitors.

Birmingham, meanwhile was noted for its “outstanding arts and exhibitions.  The city’s cultural scene attracted 737,000 visitors while Glasgow captivated some 687,000 visitors.

In terms of holiday trips, London finished up with a very respectable 6.6 million visits.  Edinburgh came in second place with 771,000 and Scotland’s second city Glasgow finished third with 312,000, followed by Inverness and the Highlands with 180,000.

Liverpool, the European capital of culture back in 2008 finished next in terms of holidays, with an average 162,000 foreign visitors staying over in each of the past four years.

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