Titanic Belfast is ‘King of the World’

Titanic Belfast has been crowned ‘World’s Leading Tourist Attraction’ at the prestigious World Travel Awards in the Maldives.

Having already beaten the Colosseum, the Acropolis and the Eiffel Tower to become Europe’s official Leading Tourist Attraction, Titanic Belfast sailed its way to victory to become the World’s Leading Tourist Attraction, bringing the award back to the UK after 10 years.

With more than a million votes cast from more than 216 countries, Titanic Belfast was crowned as the World’s Leading Tourist Attraction. It beat off stiff competition from eight global finalists, including Ferrari World Abu Dhabi; the Las Vegas Strip, USA; Machu Picchu, Peru and Guinness Storehouse, Ireland. It is the first time an attraction from Northern Ireland has won this prestigious accolade.

Tim Husbands MBE, Titanic Belfast’s chief executive, said that the award “shines a spotlight not only on RMS Titanic Belfast but Belfast and Northern Ireland”, and added:

“The Titanic story captures hearts and minds throughout the world and at Titanic Belfast, this is no exception. Our interpretation of the story and ability to engage with visitors on many different levels has been fundamental in winning this award. Through this award, we hope to attract more tourists to Northern Ireland to discover it

The public, industry partners, well-known personalities, politicians, sports stars and businesses provided their support to crown the landmark as ‘King of the World’ on a par with previous winners including the Taj Mahal, Las Vegas Strip and the Pyramids of Egypt.

Described by The Guardian as “an inspiring testament to the Titanic and the city that built it”, more than three million people from around the world have already visited Titanic Belfast since opening in 2012.

Our picture shows Titanic Belfast CEO Tim Husbands MBE and vice-chairman Conal Harvey celebrating as Titanic Belfast is named ‘King of the World’ at the World Travel Awards.