Natural History Museum Sets New Record as UK's Most Visited Attraction
London's Natural History Museum has achieved a historic milestone, becoming the United Kingdom's most visited tourist attraction according to newly released figures. The iconic institution welcomed an unprecedented 7.1 million visitors throughout 2025, representing a substantial 13% increase from the previous year's numbers.
Record-Breaking Numbers and Exhibition Success
The Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (Alva) confirmed that this attendance figure establishes an all-time high for any UK museum or gallery. A significant contributor to this success has been the museum's Fixing Our Broken Planet exhibition, which opened in April 2025 and has already attracted more than two million visitors. This climate change-focused display has rapidly become the free museum's second most popular space, trailing only behind its perennial crowd-pleaser: the dinosaur exhibits.
Dr. Doug Gurr, Director of the Natural History Museum, expressed profound enthusiasm about the achievement. "We are absolutely thrilled with these figures," he stated. "They demonstrate the enormous public appetite to engage with the wonders of the natural world and the critical issues facing our planet."
Broader UK Tourism Landscape and Recovery Challenges
Across the United Kingdom, the 409 most popular tourist attractions recorded a total of 165.2 million visits in 2025. This represents a modest 2% increase from the 161.4 million visits recorded in the previous year. However, the sector continues to face recovery challenges, with overall attendance remaining 7% below pre-coronavirus pandemic levels seen in 2019.
Bernard Donoghue, Director of Alva, highlighted a specific factor hindering full recovery. He noted that the number of Chinese visitors has only rebounded to approximately 80% of pre-pandemic levels. Donoghue attributed this shortfall directly to a policy decision made by the Conservative government in 2020 to terminate tax-free shopping for international visitors.
"This was an act of economic self-harm," Donoghue told the Press Association. "We're now seeing the effect of that in terms of the UK not being the top choice for people from China. While we have 80% of the Chinese market we had in 2019, Italy and Spain are at 120-125% of their 2019 visitors from China. Chinese tourists are still traveling long-haul, but they are choosing destinations where they can obtain significantly better value."
Top Attractions Across the United Kingdom
The rankings for the UK's most visited attractions in 2025 are as follows:
- Natural History Museum, London: 7.1 million visits
- British Museum, London: 6.4 million visits
- Windsor Great Park, Berkshire: 5.0 million visits
Leading attractions in the devolved nations also posted strong numbers:
- Scotland: National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh led with 2.3 million visits.
- Wales: St Fagans National Museum of History in Cardiff was the top destination with 570,000 visits.
- Northern Ireland: Titanic Belfast attracted the most visitors, exceeding 950,000.
The data underscores a robust public interest in cultural and historical sites, even as the tourism industry navigates post-pandemic economic and policy-related headwinds. The Natural History Museum's record-breaking year, fueled by both timeless exhibits and timely climate discourse, solidifies its position at the pinnacle of UK visitor attractions.
