Bolton is the second fastest growing tourist destination in the UK, with visitors flocking to the town for sport and shopping.

New figures from Holiday Inn show the number of guests at its Bolton hotel increased by 10.5 per cent this year, beaten only by Swindon and well ahead of 3.9 per cent growth in Manchester or the 3.4 per cent growth in Preston.

A total of 41,152 people stayed at the Bolton Holiday Inn between January and September 2007, compared to 37,244 the previous year.

Dieter Koch, general manager of the Holiday Inn Bolton, said: "We have a lot of families staying and a lot of business is definitely football related.

"If there is Champions League or European football in Manchester or Bolton, then we are always really busy. It is a really mixed crowd who visit."

Carl Ramsden, sales office manager at the Last Drop Village Hotel and Spa, confirmed that sport was a big draw for visitors.

He said: "People come here from the history but football does have a good effect and the boxing at the Arena filled us up completely.

"Coach tours come in from Ireland to go and watch Manchester United. They tend to have organised itineraries to see other attractions across the north west too."

Nihan Yuceil, Sales and Marketing Co-ordinator at De Vere White hotel, said: "Our football team is the biggest attraction. Also, the multi-cultural attractions, like restaurants are really good in Bolton. We attract corporate travellers, families supporting their team and the football teams themselves."

Shopping is also a big draw, with Middlebrook Retail Park the most visited attraction in the town, but the city centre markets are also popular.

Mr Koch said: "People really enjoy shopping in the city centre- a lot of guests remark to me how much they liked it."

Council figures show Bolton attracted 9.3 million visitors in 2005, an increase of 20 per cent since 2000.

Tourists spent £330 million and helped support 5,832 jobs.

The good news of the tourism industry is that many people decide to return to the city. Mr Koch said: "I would say a lot of people don't research Bolton in advance and often they arrive here and are pleasantly surprised. About 30 to 45 per cent of guests are repeat visitors."

Ebrahim Adia, councillor responsible for tourism, said: "This shows that the Bolton Tourism Strategy is beginning to deliver results with increasing numbers of people visiting the town to shop, visit heritage sites and other key attractions such as the Octagon Theatre and the Museum and Galleries and watch premiership football.

"The regeneration of the town centre, which will result in an investment of over £1 billion over the next ten years, will see the creation of new shopping facilities, cafes, bars, restaurants and a new cinema and will make Bolton an even more exciting destination for visitors in the future."