Tourists splash out £500m on royal visits

Culture and heritage generally, including theatres, galleries and pubs, helped raise 4.6bn in spending by foreign residents last year, a report from VisitBritain showed.

Of the 30 million overseas visitors who came to Britain last year, 5.8 million visited a castle, five million a historic house and 6.4 million a religious monument such as a cathedral.

The Tower of London was the top royal attraction for international visitors in 2009 with just under 2.4 million visitors – up 11 per cent on 2008.

The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, south London, was second on 2.37 million, with the Victoria and Albert Museum in London third with 2.27 million visitors.

Buckingham Palace welcomed 402,000 visitors last year – a two per cent rise – while Windsor Castle visits rose 6.3 per cent to 987,000.

VisitBritain chief executive Sandie Dawe said: "This fascinating research shows Britain's monarchic heritage draws foreign tourists to just about every corner of the country.

"The Queen celebrates her diamond jubilee in 2012 and this report suggests she is going to generate a bonanza for British tourism."