Mayor suggests Americans are keen to escape President Trump’s illiberal US and instead enjoy London’s “diverse culture”, reports Kumail Jaffer

Sir Sadiq Khan has credited London’s “open, liberal and diverse” culture for the “surge” in American tourism to the capital.

In what is likely a thinly veiled swipe at US President Donald Trump – who recently claimed that London was operating under religious “sharia law” – the London mayor said the city was becoming “increasingly attractive” to American citizens.

New figures analysed by City Hall show that the number of US visitors to London increased by 8% in 2024, and a fifth since 2022.

Last year the capital saw 5.56million American tourists, according to the International Passenger Survey. Further figures released by the Office of National Statistics show that American visitors spent £4.6billion in London in 2024, compared to £3.7bn two years earlier.

In contrast, there has been a downward trend in the number of Brits holidaying across the Atlantic.

Just 2.2million did so in 2024, a fall of 100,000 from the year prior and a significant fall from the 3.13million that visited for holiday purposes in 2019.

Khan told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “I’m delighted that we’ve seen a major surge in visitors from the USA. It’s testament to the world-leading offer we have in London, from our hospitality, to our arts and culture, to our brilliant shops and restaurants.

“London remains the best city in the world to visit and explore.

“For a lot of Americans I speak with it’s also London’s values which increasingly make it so attractive.

“We celebrate our open, liberal and diverse culture, and have a clear message that whatever your background there’ll always be something for you in London and you’ll always be welcome here.”

His comments may be seen in White House circles as a riposte to the US president, who stepped up his decade-long feud with the mayor during a UK visit last month.

Last month, President Trump said he “didn’t want” Khan at the King’s state banquet and branded him as “among the worst mayors in the world”.

Days later, when addressing the UN General Assembly in New York, Trump said London had “a terrible, terrible mayor, and it’s been changed, it’s been so changed”.

He added: “Now they want to go to Sharia law.”

Khan responded by suggesting the US president is “racist, sexist, misogynistic and Islamophobic.”

He added: “People are wondering what it is about this Muslim mayor who leads a liberal, multicultural, progressive and successful city, that means I appear to be living rent-free inside Donald Trump’s head.”

The mayor’s office has been pushing back on various attacks on London – primarily from President Trump and Reform UK – as part of a counter-narrative to claims that London is a “lawless” city.

The capital saw 20.9m visits from abroad in 2024, up 3% on the previous year.

Spending also rose by four per cent to £17.3bn.

The increasing visitor numbers have prompted calls for ministers to allow the mayor to implement a “tourism tax” in the capital in order to raise revenue for infrastructure projects.

While Khan has stated he is in favour of this, the government have insisted there are no plans to introduce a levy.

Last week a Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government spokesperson told the LDRS: “There are currently no plans to introduce a tourism tax in England, but we are open to hearing views from local leaders on this.

“Places including London can already choose to introduce a levy on overnight stays through the Accommodation Business Improvement District model.”

No news is bad news

Independent news outlets like ours – reporting for the community without rich backers – are under threat of closure, turning British towns into news deserts.

The audiences they serve know less, understand less, and can do less.

If our coverage has helped you understand our community a little bit better, please consider supporting us with a monthly, yearly or one-off donation.

Choose the news. Don’t lose the news.

Monthly direct debit

Annual direct debit

£5 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else, £10 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else and a print copy posted to them each month. £50 annual supporters get a digital copy of each month's paper before anyone else.