RECORD-breaking numbers of daytrippers and ‘staycationers’ descended on Oxford last month to give the city’s economy a shot in the arm.

The number of people passing through the city’s tourist information office hit an all-time high in July, bumper numbers logged on to Oxford’s Tourism website and visitor attractions reported a huge spike in footfall.

Tourism is worth £600m a year to the city and supports more than 13,000 jobs, according to economic researchers.

A rise in the popularity of holidays in the UK amid the uncertain economic climate and are thought to have contributed to the surge in visitors.

Travel abroad has been dogged by problems in recent months with the Icelandic ash cloud causing airport chaos, strikes and several holiday companies going out of business due to financial problems.

Oxford City Council’s tourism manager Jo Butler believes the ‘staycation’ effect, with families deciding to holiday at home, has been an important factor in boosting visitor numbers.

She said the number of people calling in at the Tourism Information Centre was the highest since the office moved to Broad Street six years ago.

Figures for July show 78,934 people visited the centre for advice about attractions, accommodation and events, up by 13,721 on the same month last year.

Ms Butler added: “We have never seen footfall like this.”

The number of tourists using the Visit Oxford website also leaped last month.

The site usually attracts about 132,000 unique visitors each month, but the figure for July climbed past 150,000.

Ms Butler said there was a clear rise in the numbers of British visitors.

“I really do think it’s because of the ‘staycation’ effect,” she said.

“We’re also seeing people decide very last minute, whereas a couple of years ago people were booking well in advance.

“They’re waiting to see the economic situation before making plans.”

One major factor in Oxford’s tourism renaissance is the rejuvenated Ashmolean Museum, in Beaumont Street.

The world famous attraction was reopened by The Queen in December last year after a £61m modernisation programme, which has won a series of heritage and architecture awards.

Museum spokesman Claire Parris said that it seen a record number of visitors since the reopening, with more than 750,000 people passing through its doors so far this year.

“We should be well over a million in our first year,” she added.

“We used to get 450,000 people a year. Now we have had nearly twice that number in just nine months.”

And other attractions are sharing in the bonanza.

Modern Art Oxford, in Pembroke Street, has seen a 50 per cent increase in visitors so far this summer.

More than 21,000 people have enjoyed its exhibitions in the past eight weeks, more than the gallery usually sees in three months.

Marketing assistant Kayleigh Hellin said the record visitor numbers were being helped by the gallery’s new yard and cafe area and an exhibition by popular British artist Howard Hodgkin.

She said: “Oxford is just such a cultural city and there’s so much going on.”

Pubs close to the city’s major attractions are also raising a glass to a profitable summer.

Aleks Jurek, manager of the White Horse, in Broad Street, said she had to take on extra staff to cope with the numbers of customers wanting to drink and eat there.

“We have been really busy all the time. It has been amazing,” she said.

“Takings are about 30 per cent up on last summer, that’s how the figures look.”