Natural History Museum Surpasses British Museum as UK's Most-Visited Attraction
The Natural History Museum in London has officially become the United Kingdom's most-visited tourist attraction, according to newly released data. The institution has overtaken the long-standing leader, the British Museum, after welcoming a record-breaking number of visitors in 2025.
Record-Breaking Visitor Figures
The South Kensington museum recorded an impressive 7.1 million visits throughout 2025, representing a substantial 13 per cent increase from the previous year's figures. This milestone marks an all-time high for any museum or gallery across the UK, as confirmed by the trade association Alva.
A significant contributor to this surge in popularity was the museum's Fixing Our Broken Planet exhibition, which focused on climate change issues. Launched in April 2025, this exhibition alone attracted over two million visitors, making it the museum's second most-popular space, trailing only behind its world-renowned dinosaur exhibits.
Leadership and Public Engagement
Dr Doug Gurr, Director of the Natural History Museum, expressed his delight at the achievement. He stated that the museum was "thrilled" with the visitor numbers, which he believes demonstrate "the enormous public appetite to engage with the wonders of the natural world." This sentiment underscores the growing public interest in environmental and scientific topics.
UK Tourism Landscape
Across the United Kingdom, popular tourist attractions collectively recorded 165.2 million visits in 2025. While this represents a modest 2 per cent rise from the 161.4 million visits recorded in 2024, overall visitor numbers remain 7 per cent below pre-pandemic levels from 2019.
Bernard Donoghue, Director of Alva, attributed part of this shortfall to the recovery of Chinese visitor numbers, which have only reached 80 per cent of pre-pandemic levels. He criticised the Conservative government's 2020 decision to end tax-free shopping for inbound visitors, describing it as "an act of economic self-harm."
Donoghue explained, "We're now seeing the effect of that in terms of the UK not being the top choice for people from China. We've got 80 per cent of the Chinese market that we had in 2019, but Italy and Spain are at 120-125 per cent of the visitors that they had from China in 2019. It's not that the Chinese visitors aren't flying long-haul, but they are going to places where they can get a really good deal."
Regional Attraction Rankings
The British Museum in central London, previously the top attraction, fell to second place with 6.4 million visits. In third position was Windsor Great Park in Berkshire, which welcomed 5 million visitors.
Regional leaders included:
- Scotland: National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh (2.3 million visits)
- Wales: St Fagans National Museum of History in Cardiff (570,000 visits)
- Northern Ireland: Titanic Belfast (over 950,000 visits)
These figures highlight the diverse appeal of cultural and historical attractions across the UK, with the Natural History Museum's success reflecting a broader trend towards engagement with natural history and environmental issues.
