The graph indicates how many overseas visitors came to the UK for distinct purposes over the period from 1989 to 2009.
Overall, visitor numbers coming to the UK for all three purposes witnessed an upward trend . Additionally, the quantity of tourists arriving in the UK for holiday remained the highest figure for almost years during the given timeframe.
As can be seen from the chart, tourist numbers going on holiday in the UK took the first position in 1989 with nearly 7 million , compared to just 5 million of the data for business. The next 5 years observed a marked increase in the quantity of visitors travelling to the UK for holiday, peaking at 9 million. The figure for business followed the same pattern, but at a lower pace ( with over 6 million). From 1999 to 2004, overseas tourist numbers to the UK for holiday fell substantially to the starting point and then bounded back to 9 million in the final year. Meanwhile,the year 2004 experienced a significant growth in the number of visitors for business with nearly 8 million before this figure decreased to 7 million in 2009.
When it comes to the remaining category, tourist numbers visiting the UK for meeting friends and relatives stayed at the lowest number throughout the period. This figure rocketed from nearly 4 to 6 million during the given timeframe.