Insider Media Limited

Birmingham is aiming to attract more than 37 million visitors per year by 2014. It has been selling itself as a tourism destination with a "lot of strengths and a cultural offering" to visiting Eastern Europeans. Emma Gray, at Marketing Birmingham, told Insider that the city hopes to increase the number of visitors by 5 per cent each year for three years as it aims to "capitalise on international visitors". Visit Birmingham hosted 22 international buyers from Poland, the Czech Republic and Hungary who travelled around the West Midlands to find out what the region offers.

The fact-finding trip, organised in conjunction with Visit Britain, aimed to raise the profile of the West Midlands in the run-up to the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. It also coincided with the Best of Britain & Ireland Travel Trade Forum (BoBI), which took place in Birmingham on 16 and 17 March.

Birmingham is aiming to attract 37.7 million visitors by 2014 - up from its current level of 32.6 million tourists.

Gray, the director of marketing services for Marketing Birmingham - which manages the Visit Birmingham campaign, told Insider that it was too early to tell if any business will come from the trip.

She said: "It went very well. They were basically on a fact-finding mission. There's been a significant increase in international visitors from that part of the world. This city offers value for money and offers a base for people looking to explore. Capitalising on international visitors is part of our strategy."

Gray said the city was focusing on attracting visitors from areas including the USA and Europe. She said the city attracts particular interest from Germany and the Netherlands due to its industrial heritage.

Gray said of Birmingham: "The city has got a lot of strengths and a a cultural offering. It's also a really good base for people to come to given the location - we are close to Stratford, Warwick and the Cotswolds and have good access to both the north and south."

The average spend per visit in 2009 was £415 to the UK by European residents, Gray said, which equates to £16.6bn per year.

As part of the two-day itinerary, the Eastern European delegates visited the Museum of the Jewellery Quarter, Birmingham Cathedral, Warwick Castle, Shakespeare’s birthplace and Villa Park, home of Aston Villa.