Two of Devon’s towns have been named in the UK’s top 10 seaside towns in new research from Place Informatics, which provides data on visitor behaviour, locations and footfall.
According to the data, both Torquay and Ilfracombe feature in the top 10 with Torquay coming in at number 5 and Ilfracombe at 10. The stats show that Torquay has had an increase of 1.7 million visitors compared to last year while Ilfracombe had 1.1 million, an increase of nearly 380,000 people.
Located in the English Riviera, Torquay has always been one of the region’s most popular seaside resorts, having entertained holiday makers for generations. Ilfracombe on the other hand is at the opposite end of the county in North Devon and is home to the famous Tunnels Beaches.
Topping the list was Brighton in Sussex which had over 6.7 million more visitors last year than the previous year, followed by Blackpool and then Bournemouth. The full top ten is as follows:
Brighton, Sussex
Blackpool, Lancashire
Bournemouth, Dorset
Scarborough, Yorkshire
Torquay, Devon
Isle of Wight
Weston super Mare, Somerset
Newquay, Cornwall
Llandudno, Wales
Ilfracombe, Devon
Speaking about the results, Clive Hall, CEO of Place Informatics commented: “It is great to see these popular seaside towns attracting so many more visitors over the last 12 months, but these huge increases can impact local businesses, services and infrastructure if not managed correctly. Our data helps these seaside towns understand their visitors and helps them plan to minimise any negative impact of this increased popularity and ensure these additional visitors are positive for the towns and their businesses.”
