OXFORD University museums and attractions enjoyed record-breaking visitor numbers in 2017, according to the latest figures.
More than 3.2 million people – a 13 per cent rise – called in at the university’s six cultural attractions last year – the Ashmolean Museum, the Bodleian Library, the Botanic Garden, the Museum of the History of Science, the Natural History Museum and the Pitt Rivers Museum.
The double-digit increase means, for the first time, three Oxford attractions – the Ashmolean, the Bodleian and Natural History Museum – have made it into the top 50 most visited attractions in the UK, listed by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions.
The Bodleian, the home of the country’s most precious literary treasures, recorded a massive increase in visitors, 771,283, up 25 per cent, thanks to the continuing success of the Weston Library, which opened in 2015, offering new exhibition galleries, a café and shop.
Prof Anne Trefethen, pro vice-chancellor for the university’s gardens, libraries and museums, said: “I’m delighted that so many visitors are enjoying our rich and fascinating collections.
“Oxford has so much to offer – whatever your age and interests.
“And the fact that most of our venues are free and located so close together means you can easily explore two or three in a single day.”
Oxford University Museums Partnership was the only institutional group to achieve a top-50 trio, and collectively the group now ranks in the top 10 of UK visitor attractions, ahead of Royal Museums Greenwich and National Museums Scotland.
The 13 per cent increase compared with a 7.4 per cent increase for UK visitor attractions as a whole.
Stately home Blenheim Palace in Woodstock also made the top 50. It came 41st, with 917,741 visitors, up five per cent.
The Ashmolean, which came 38th, welcomed 938,568 visitors, an increase of 3.3 per cent.
It was a year which saw Britain’s first public museum celebrate the 400th anniversary of the birth of its founder, Elias Ashmole.
The Natural History Museum – placed 47th – saw a 15 per cent increase to 768,487 visitors – its most successful year ever.
Record-breaking visitor numbers were also enjoyed by the Pitt Rivers Museum, Museum of the History of Science and the Botanic Garden.
The Pitt Rivers (72nd) attracted 480,663 visitors, an increase of 10.7 per cent; the Museum of the History of Science (142nd) welcomed 189,813 people, a rise of 11.8 per cent, while the Botanic Garden (160th) increased numbers by 23.5 per cent to 143,914.
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