Fly into Manchester and you could be walking in the Lake District, watching football in Liverpool or crossing into North Wales within days — all without a single long-haul leg. That, according to VisitBritain CEO Patricia Yates, is the pitch Britain should be making to Australian travellers: a small country packing an outsized variety of experiences into one trip.
Yates was in Australia for VisitBritain's 2026 trade mission, which brought nearly 30 UK suppliers face to face with around 450 Australian travel advisors and buyers in Sydney. Her message: look beyond London.
Sport is a big part of the story. Around 81,000 Australians attend a live sporting event during a trip to Britain, spending close to £100 million in the process. Next up is the 150th anniversary of Test cricket, with the Ashes playing out across famous grounds in London, Birmingham, Nottingham and Southampton in July. Football is expanding its appeal too — clubs like Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City and even Wrexham are building museums, stadium tours and hotels, turning a Saturday match into a full destination experience aimed at international visitors.
Then there's the screen effect. Nine in 10 Australian visitors say they want to see filming locations from shows and movies, and Britain is leaning in hard. The Starry Great Britain campaign ties destinations to productions like Peaky Blinders, Bridgerton and Wuthering Heights — you can visit the Black Country Living Museum where Peaky Blinders was set, or walk the moors that doubled for the Yorkshire classics. Even the new Practical Magic film was shot in England, giving fans another reason to book.
Yates also defended the role of travel agents in an AI-heavy research world. Australians spend a lot on UK trips and itineraries can be complex, so while travellers arrive better informed than before, they still want expert confirmation that their plan will actually work.
For Australians plotting a Britain trip, the takeaway is simple: base yourself outside London. Manchester works as a hub for the Lake District, Liverpool and North Wales — two countries in one holiday, as Yates puts it. Add a match, a film location and a train ride or two, and you've got a very different Britain from the usual capital city circuit.
