VisitBritain’s global ‘Great’ advertising campaign is to be unveiled today ahead of a launch in New York next week.
The promotion will target 14 cities worldwide in a bid to attract 4.6 million extra visitors to the UK over the next four years.
Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, the US and Australia are being targeted by the multi-million pound promotional push.
If numbers are reached, the country will receive an extra £2.3 billion in inbound visitor spend, VisitBritain calculates.
It aims to enhance overseas perception of the UK as a major tourist destination at a time of high profile events such as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations and London 2012 Olympic Games.
The campaign is being kicked off in London by culture, Olympics, media and sport secretary Jeremy Hunt, tourism minister John Penrose and VisitBritain chief executive Sandie Dawe.
Dawe said: “We have long recognised that 2012 will present us with a once in a lifetime opportunity to build a solid tourism legacy, one that will help us to grow a sector which already contributes over £17 billion in foreign exchange to the UK economy each year and had potential to grow.
“The more overseas visitors we can entice to visit Britain as a result of this campaign, the more jobs the industry can sustain right across the country.”