WHEN Blenheim Palace launched a radical new initiative last year by holding an exhibition by dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei, it had the desired effect of attracting different types of people from those who usually visit the historic site.

Blenheim Palace chief executive John Hoy said: “That brought a whole new audience for us. International visitors were attracted by an international art show.”

The palace’s success with the Ai Weiwei exhibition, which ran from October 2014 until April and helped boost attendances, is indicative of a wider trend of tourist attractions in and around Oxford enticing foreign visitors.

According to an Office for National Statistics report released last week, Oxford was the fourth-highest city in the UK in terms of spending by overseas tourists in 2014, taking in £325 million for the year – London came first with £11.8 billion.

Mr Hoy said total visitor numbers for Blenheim Palace, which is located just outside Oxford in Woodstock, were up five per cent to about 640,000 in 2014, compared to the previous year.

This was in line with the increase in international tourists to the UK over the same period.

He estimates about 20 per cent of visitors to the World Heritage site are foreign, and the remaining 80 per cent are domestic.

“Blenheim draws people from pretty much everywhere,” he said.

The top two countries, however, are North America, because of the palace’s connection with Winston Churchill, and China.

The palace is intent on building its international audience.

This year Blenheim, the birthplace of Churchill, is commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Second World War leader’s death.

In 2016, it will celebrate the 300th anniversary of the birth of landscape architect Capability Brown, who designed Blenheim’s extensive grounds.

There will also be more art exhibitions. “The aim is to have a strong contemporary art show each year,” said Mr Hoy.

The 18th century palace, Oxford University’s historic colleges, the medieval Oxford Castle, the Bicester Village retail outlet and a host of other attractions remain high on the list of destinations for foreigners.

The ONS report found that Oxford recorded the seventh-highest number of foreign visitors in 2014 among UK cities, attracting 490,000 international travellers over 3.4m nights.

International tourists spent an average £662 over the duration of their visits to Oxford, or £95 per day.

Theresa Nicolson, marketing manager of the Ashmolean Museum, said the Oxford cultural institution’s biggest groups of foreign visitors were from North America and China.

“We [also] see a lot of school groups and team groups: Chinese, Spanish, French.”

Mrs Nicolson said a recent exit survey revealed that about 13 per cent of the museum’s total visitors were from abroad.

However, during peak summer periods the number of foreigners could be as high as one in every five visitors.

The Ashmolean attracts about 850,000 people a year.