When golf’s Open Championship was held at Royal Birkdale in July it was estimated it would boost Liverpool city region by £200m and first evidence of the benefits emerge in Liverpool hotel occupancy data. Tony McDonough reports
Liverpool hotels enjoyed a significant occupancy boost when golf’s Open Championship was held at Royal Birkdale in July.
Around 300,000 people came from all over the world to see the world’s top golfers compete for the sport’s top prize. New Zealander Ryan Fox lifted the Claret Jug after being crowned Champion Golfer of the Year.
It was estimated the event, which was last held in Liverpool city region at Hoylake in 2023, would generate around £200m in economic value and the first evidence of that has started to emerge.
Figures Liverpool’s Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID) revealed that hotel occupancy in the city between July 16 and 19 was 8.8% higher than the same weekend a year ago.
Footfall in Liverpool increased by 24.6% in the early mornings as people travelled to Royal Birkdale for the Open.
Liverpool’s hotels worked with tourism partners across Liverpool city region to make the most out of the economic potential of The Open. The ABID announced a new partnership with Sefton Council, the Liverpool City Region Destination Partnership and England’s Golf Coast.
Hotel occupancy in Liverpool city centre for the Open was 90.3%, an increase of 1.7% on the same period last year. July 2025 was a record breaking month for Liverpool’s hotels.
With tee times starting at 7am in the early rounds, tracking footfall from 6am to 10am shows the impact of those travelling from Liverpool city centre to Southport via the train.
Not including practice rounds, the total early morning footfall was 24.6%, compared with the same period in 2025. It rose by 33.3% on the Friday and 31.1% on the Saturday, rising by 19.7% on the Sunday. Throughout the days of the competition, footfall rose by 6.5%.
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Liverpool BID chief executive Bill Addy said: “What has been achieved with The Open is the ability to maximise an economic benefit and to make the most out of it for the city’s visitor economy.
“This data shows that with a clear strategy and objective, the model that Liverpool has led the way on with a visitor levy, can have a real impact.
“The strategy behind the £2 levy in Liverpool is to increase hotel occupancy and to have a benefit on the visitor economy. It means that overnight visitors can have a positive impact on the city’s visitor economy in a sustainable way.”
And new agreement between Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and the R&A, golf’s governing body, means the event is set to return to the city region on multiple occasions over the next few years.