HC Deb 13 February 1986 vol 91 cc503-4W
5. Mr. Faulds

asked the Minister for the Arts what information he has on the number of visitors to the National Maritime museum who made payments for admission during the year ended 31 December 1985.

Mr. Luce

The number of visitors who paid for admission to the National Maritime museum main building or the Old Royal Observatory or both during 1985 is estimated at 453,237. This figure is based on an analysis of tickets sold, using the following conventions:

  1. i. each family ticket sold represents four visitors;
  2. ii. each local resident's annual ticket sold represents one
    3. 504
  3. visitor;
  4. iii. each school's annual ticket sold represents 30 visitors;
  5. iv. each of the 229,516 combined tickets sold, giving admission to the main building and the observatory, is counted as one visitor only.

In addition, it is estimated that there were around 147,000 non-paying repeat visits and free admissions during 1985.

I understand also that, for the nine months in 1984 during which admission charges operated (1 April to 31 December), the number of paying visitors estimated on the above conventions was 361,840. The corresponding figure for the same nine months in 1985 was 401,135, representing an increase of some 11 per cent.