Argentina invades Britain: Record numbers of tourists spend £100million in UK despite renewed tensions over the Falkands

103,500 visits from Argentina in 2012 - up 27% year-on-year

They stayed in the UK for a total of 1.07million nights - an 84% rise

Visitors from Argentina spent £101million, up from just £40million in 2011

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has stepped up claim to Islands

Argentinian tourists have staged a British invasion, with record numbers flying in to the UK in the last year.

The influx of more than 100,000 visitors – up more than a quarter year-on-year - comes despite renewed tensions between the two countries over the status of the Falkland Islands.

Attempts by Argentinian President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner to stoke anti-British feeling have failed to stop her compatriots from spending a record £104million during holidays and business trips in 2012.

Record: More than 100,000 visitors from Argentina travelled to the UK last year, spending more than £100million and staying for a total of 1.07million nights

War of words: The rise in visitors to Britain comes despite attempts by Argentinian President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner to lay claim to the Falklands, which have been rebuffed by David Cameron



President Kirchner was barred from the funeral of Baroness Thatcher last month after repeatedly laying claim to the South Atlantic islands which Britain defended during her premiership in 1982.

David Cameron has responded to the threats by refusing to rule out using force to respect the outcome of a referendum of islanders in which all but three voters said they wanted to remain a UK overseas territory.

But the war of words which has erupted after Mrs Kirchner re-election as the country’s President, only appears to have fuelled interest among Argentinians to holiday in the UK.

In fact tourism bosses believe the influx of Argentine football stars into the UK Premier League, including Man City’s Carlos Tevez and Newcastle’s Fabricio Coloccini, has also helped to stimulate interest in holidaying in Britain.

The number of visits from Argentina rose in 2012 by 27 per cent to 103,500, the highest year-on-year increase from anywhere in the world.

Visitor numbers were also more than five times higher than in 2002, when just 19,000 arrived in the UK.

And it was more than 25 times greater than the 4,000 visits made in 1983, the year after Lady Thatcher’s government liberated the Falklands, known to Argentina as Las Malvinas.



Increase: The rise in the number of visits from Argentina was higher than from any other country, official figures show

Star attractions: Interest in Britain has been fuelled by Argentinian footballers players in the Premier League including Man City's Carlos Tevez (left) and Newcastle United's Fabricio Coloccini, tourism bosses claim



In 2012, Argentinians stayed in the UK for a total of 1.07million nights - an 84 per cent increase on 2011. Visitors from Argentina spent £101million, up from just £40million a year earlier.

The visits included 22,000 more holidays in the UK, 2,000 extra business trips, 1,000 visiting students but the number of trips to visit friends and family fell by 2,000.

David Leslie, spokesman for tourism agency VisitBritain, said: ‘2012 was a record year for visits and spend from Argentina, up 28 per cent from the previous year and accounting for nearly one-fifth of all visits from Central and South America.

‘We know that Britain’s contemporary culture and rich heritage is highly regarded, while many younger Argentinian visitors see London as a vibrant city and the fashion centre of Europe.

‘If you take a look around the Premier League you’ll also find some fantastic Argentinian players plying their trade, and with major events like the Rugby World Cup taking place here, we hope we’ll be able to give a warm welcome to an even greater number of Argentinians coming to experience the very best of what Britain has to offer.’

However, relations between the countries’ two leaders has been far from warm.

Snub: Last year Mrs Kirchner tried to present Mr Cameron with a document laying claim to the Falklands, but he refused to accept it at a G20 Summit in Los Cabos

Earlier this year President Kirchner used newspaper adverts to insist her nation was ‘forcibly stripped’ of the Falklands in a ‘blatant exercise of 19th century colonialism’ – a claim branded ‘crazy’ by Whitehall officials.

In an open letter to Mr Cameron, published as an advert in Left-wing newspapers on the 180th anniversary of the alleged January 1833 takeover, she accused the UK of defying United Nations resolutions by refusing negotiations over the Falklands.

But in a strong message which risked angering Buenos Aires, Mr Cameron made clear that he was ready to respond with force if threats to the islands emerged.

He insisted that despite defence cuts, Britain would be able to defend the islands again, as Lady Thatcher did in 1982 at a cost of more than 900 lives - 255 of them British servicemen.

Mrs Kirchner attempted to thrust a package stuffed with documents about her country’s claim to the British territory into Mr Cameron’s hands in an encounter at a recent G20 summit.

To her fury, the Prime Minister repeatedly refused to accept it, insisting she should respect the views of the islanders who want to remain British.

Leader: The funeral of Baroness Thatcher was dominated by troops from units which fought to reclaim the Falklands in 1982

History: Steel helmets abandoned by Argentine armed forces who surrendered at Goose Green to British Falklands Task Force troops during the Falklands War

Official tourism figures for 2012 showed record numbers of visitors from several countries, including China and record spend by Australians and Canadians.

But the 27 per cent increase in visitors from Argentina put it well ahead of other growth markets including Hungary (24 per cent), Egypt (23 per cent) and China (20 per cent).

Tourism minister Hugh Robertson said: ‘The tourism industry plays a key part in selling a modern, welcoming and dynamic Britain abroad that helps contribute to economic growth and drive investment.