Monthly Footfall Overview: May 2025

Busy weekends, warm weather, and international visitors drove footfall in May

04/06/2025

Following our investment in Micro Location insights via O2/Virgin Media, two sensors have been installed on Victoria Street and Park Street, allowing us to better understand footfall trends across the city.

May saw positive footfall trends across two of Bristol’s key areas. Busy weekends, warmer temperatures, and strong international interest helped drive activity this month, despite a natural dip during half-term. Park Street experienced increases in visitor numbers, while Victoria Street saw a slight decrease but maintained strong year-on-year figures. Both areas continue to attract visitors with higher than average spending power, supporting a positive outlook for local businesses.

 

PARK STREET

 

OVERALL TRENDS

Footfall on Park Street was up 14% this month, with a 6% increase in visitor numbers compared to April. With footfall on the rise, the average number of visits also increased slightly. The daily average footfall was 16,932 in May, up from 15,351 in April.

Key trends included:

  • Half-term: May half-term took place from Monday 26 to Friday 30 May. During this week, footfall was down, with only 83% of the average weekday visitors compared to the previous three weeks (weekdays only). This is likely due to children being off school and parents taking time off during the holidays. 
  • Weekend impact: Weekends continue to attract most visitors to Park Street. The three busiest days in May were all weekends, with each week in May experiencing the highest visitor numbers on Saturdays.
  • International visits: May experienced a 17% increase in footfall from international visitors compared to April. Among international visitors, the highest number came from Spain.

 

VISITOR DEMOGRAPHICS & BEHAVIOUR

  • A higher percentage of visitors were aged 18-64 compared to the national average, while fewer were 65+.
  • The most popular time to visit Park Street was 2-6pm on Saturdays, with 5-6pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays also a popular time. 20% of visits were made on Saturdays despite Saturdays only accounting for 16% of the month. 
  • ‘Out of area’ visitors (those visiting rather than working or residing nearby) made up 71% of visits, down slightly compared to April. However, the percentage of weekend visits made by ‘out of area’ visitors was 79%, showing people are more likely to travel to Park Street on the weekend. 
  • The average dwell time was 27 and a half minutes, up slightly from April. 
  • 46% of visitors were female, compared to 51% nationally.

 

SPENDING POWER & TRAVEL PATTERNS

  • Compared to the UK average, Park Street visitors had a ‘high’ or ‘very high’ spend power. 
  • The proportion of visitors with ‘very high’ spend power was higher in May than in April.
  • When comparing the spending power of different categories of visitor, ‘residents’ had the highest average, followed by ‘visitors’ and then ‘workers’.   
  • 52% of visitors made 1 visit, 38% made 2-5 visits, 6% made 6-10 visits, and 3% visited over 11 times. 
  • The BS8 postcode attracted the highest number of visitors, followed by BS6.
  • 66% of visitors came from the Bristol area, slightly higher than April. 3% came from both Bath and Gloucester postcodes.

 

VICTORIA STREET

 

OVERALL TRENDS*

Victoria Street experienced a slight drop in footfall during May, with visits down 2% and visitors down 1% compared to April. However, year-on-year figures remain strong, with footfall for May 2025 approximately five times higher than May 2024.


Key trends included: 

  • Half-term: May half-term took place from Monday 26 to Friday 30 May. Footfall for this week was down, with only 87% of the average weekday visitors compared to the previous three weeks (weekdays only). This is likely due to children being off school and parents taking time off during the holidays. 
  • Bank-holiday dip: The two quietest days for footfall were both bank holidays (5 May and 26 May) likely impacted by reduced commuter and office worker activity in the area.
  • International visits: May experienced a 15% increase in footfall from international visitors compared to April. Among international visitors, the highest number came from Spain.

*These figures include a loss of network to the Victoria Street data cell on 29 and 30 April, where no footfall data was recorded on these dates.

VISITOR DEMOGRAPHICS & BEHAVIOUR

  • The busiest days for footfall were Saturdays followed by Thursday 1st May which was a sunny day with a high of 24°C. 
  • A higher percentage of visitors were aged 18-54 compared to the national average, while fewer were 55+.
  • The most popular time to visit Victoria Street was 1-8pm on Saturdays, followed by 1-2pm and 5-6pm on Tuesdays and Thursdays. 
  • Good weather in May likely encouraged more people to spend time outdoors during lunchbreaks and after work, which could explain some of the footfall trends on Victoria Street. High activity on Tuesdays and Thursdays suggests popular office days. ‘Workers’ (people whose location settings put them as working around Victoria Street rather than visiting or residing) made up 12% of all footfall in May, but only 4% of footfall on weekends and bank holidays. 
  • The average dwell time was 26 minutes, slightly lower than April. 
  • 44% of visitors were female, compared to 51% nationally.

SPENDING POWER & TRAVEL PATTERNS 

  • Compared to the UK average, Victoria Street attracted a larger proportion of visitors with ‘high’ or ‘very high’ spend power. 
  • Compared to April, the proportion of visitors with ‘very high’ spend power was higher.
  • 70% of visitors made 1 visit, 26% made 2-5 visits, 3% made 6-10 visits, and 1% made 11+ visits, similar to April. 
  • The BS4 postcode attracted the highest number of visitors, followed by BS5.
  • 62% of visitors to Victoria Street came from the Bristol area, up 2% from April. 5% came from Bath postcodes and 3% from Gloucester postcodes.

 

Our Footfall & Insights pages are updated weekly with the latest footfall data. Please refer to our Reports & Resources section for a snapshot overview of footfall in our Monthly Visitor Reports and an overview of spend behaviours in our Quarterly Spend Reports. 

The expanded footfall data can be viewed through our online dashboard for more effective and informed decision making. Please get in touch if you would like more information.

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