Stonehenge Visitor Numbers

Stonehenge is one of the most popular attractions in the UK. It makes it even more impressive when you consider its location. It is located a considerable distance outside of London and not easily accessible by public transport. So while the likes of Kew Gardens or the Tate are classed as the most visited… you need to consider their location and ease of getting to. If Stonehenge was in London, there is no doubt it would be the most popular attraction in the UK.

The ancient Stonehenge circle in the evening — A wonderful image captured by a visitor to Stonehenge on their phone

How many people visit Stonehenge?

In 2019, Stonehenge saw a peak in visitors of 1.6 million. However, when the pandemic hit, this dropped in 2020 to approx 1.27m. The drop continued because of multiple factors:

School children not doing school trips
Overseas visitors no longer travelling
Covid restrictions to limiting numbers

The Impact of Covid on Stonehenge

You can see from the below chart the impact Covid had on interest in Stonehenge. The below terms come from Google Ads data for “Stonehenge Tickets.” In 2020 you can see the significant decline in interest when the UK was in lockdown, and from September, it raised, albeit still lower than in previous years. 2021 was slower than earlier years, albeit still up, though.

Interest in Stonehenge tickets over time from google ads data — Chart of interest in “Stonehenge Tickets” from Google Ads data

What celebrities have visited Stonehenge?

While millions of people have visited Stonehenge, there are a few notable people to have walked amongst the famous Stones. Some celebrities, including former President of the United States Barack Obama, and famous singer Miley Cirus, also claimed to have a spiritual moment while visiting. Finally, British Olympic diver Tom Daley has also visited, and many more have no doubt visited the ancient Stones.