
London welcomed more than 16 million people to the city in 2013, setting a tourism record for most visitors in a year.
London officials say hosting the Olympics in 2012 gave the city a boost.
According to statistics released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), a record 4.9 million people visited London between July and September. For the first nine months of 2013 the city welcomed nearly 12.8 million visitors, a 12 percent increase compared to 2012.
Visits from North America in the third quarter were up 12.2 percent.