Three Edinburgh tourist attractions named among the top 10 best in the UK in new study
Three Edinburgh tourist attractions have been named in a top 10 list of the best tourist attractions in the UK based on the findings of a new study.
Credit card brand Aqua has conducted research into which attractions are the best and most affordable in the UK and Europe. To determine which are the best, they analysed metrics such as visitor ratings, the cost of admission and the cost of a meal at a restaurant nearby.
With tourist season in Edinburgh now seeming to be all year round rather than just at Hogmanay and August for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, it’s perhaps no surprise that Edinburgh is the only UK city with more than one visitor attraction to make the top 10.
The Angel of the North, Gateshead, one of the UK’s most famous art pieces, takes the top spot. The contemporary sculpture receives a near-top rating of 4.5 out of five and costs nothing to visit, making it one of the most affordable attractions in the country. Plus, a meal nearby costs around £15, keeping costs low for day visitors.
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The National Museum of Scotland in Edinburgh, well-known for showcasing Scottish history and culture, follows closely in second place with the same rating of 4.5 out of five, demonstrating a solid visitor satisfaction rate. Additionally, there are no reviews mentioning it as overpriced, thanks to its free entry fee and low average meal cost of £16.
The next Edinburgh tourist attraction on the list is the Royal Yacht Britannia at Ocean Terminal in Leith, which was placed seventh in the top 10. It also has an impressive average visitor rating of 4.5 out of five. And with an entry price of £20 and a meal costing £16, only 0.48 per cent of reviews mentioned their visit being overpriced.
Edinburgh Castle came in ninth place on the top 10 tourist attractions in the UK list. Again, it has an average visitor review rating of 4.5 out of five, as well as an entry price of £20 and a meal costing £16. However, one per cent of reviews mentioned the castle as being overpriced or expensive.
The Top 10 tourists attractions in the UK: 1. Angel of the North, Gateshead; 2. National Museum of Scotland, Edinburgh; 3. The Bombay Sapphire Distillery, Hampshire; 4. Blackpool Tower, Blackpool; 5. Monkey World, Dorset; 6. Canterbury Cathedral, Canterbury; 7. Royal Yacht Britannia, Edinburgh; 8. Roman Baths, Bath; 9. Edinburgh Castle, Edinburgh; 10. Brighton Palace Pier, Brighton.
The study also found that Legoland Windsor is rated as the worst tourist attraction with a cost of £68 and nearly six per cent of reviews described it as “overpriced”.
The Alhambra in Spain is the best tourist attraction in Europe according to the findings, with a rating of 4.5 and the cost of a meal averaging £6 (€7.10).