AS AMERICANS celebrate the Fourth of July today, tourism staff vowed to work hard to keep the US dollar flowing into Oxfordshire.

According to Experience Oxfordshire, the county’s tourist agency, there were 72,831 United States visitors to the county last year, down slightly on the previous year’s total of 73,447.

Even though there was slight fall in the total number of visitors from the States, they were spending more in total – £56.8m last year compared to the previous year’s total of £51.3m.

The other countries in the top five with the most US visitors are France, Germany, Holland and Spain.

Experience Oxfordshire spokesman Martin Walker said: “The Americans spend incredibly well when they come to the county so they continue to be our main focus.

“The recent Magna Carta celebration was a perfect product for us to target US visitors and we will do everything we can to keep bringing in the Americans.

“Oxfordshire is becoming an increasingly attractive tourist destination.

“Downton Abbey goes out in America and that has proved a big draw – we get lots of enquiries about that and stage a walking tour in Bampton.

“The detective series Lewis and Endeavour, following on from Inspector Morse, are also popular with Americans.

“Sulgrave Manor, near Banbury, has a connection with George Washington so that is also a big draw, and the history and heritage of the Oxford University colleges and museums, including the Ashmolean, quickly put Oxford on the list for Americans touring the UK.

“Once they have visited they will probably head over to the Cotswolds and visit Bampton and Burford.

“Then when they are in West Oxfordshire they will inevitably call at Blenheim to check on the Churchill connections.

“We are keen to spread the American spend around Oxfordshire so it is not just focused in Oxford.”

Mr Walker said Experience Oxfordshire works with the Visit Britain organisation to market the county and its attractions to the Americans.

He added: “”Once the Americans have been drawn into the city to see the iconic attractions we make them aware of Blenheim, Bampton, the Cotswolds and Henley – attract and disperse is the model we work with.

“Every day, especially in the summer, you can see American tourists visiting the Bodleian Library in Broad Street, including the new Weston Library, and having their picture taken outside the Radcliffe Camera.”

In 2014 there were 632,311 international visitors to Oxfordshire, spending £379.7m.

This was up on the previous year’s total of 594,285 international visitors, who spent £335.9m.

In second place were the French with 69,194 spending £19.8m, compared to 66,050 spending a total of £30.5m the previous year.

In third place last year were the Germans, with 61,172 visitors spending £27.1m, compared to 46,772 visitors spending £20.7m in 2013.

The Dutch were also significant spenders with £42,818 last year spending £10.7m, compared to the previous year’s total of 45,924 spending £11.6m.

There were 34,151 Spanish visitors last year spending £17.1m, compared to 2013 when there were 27,898 spending £13.1m.

The international visitor figures do not include visitors from inside the UK.

According to Oxford City Council, Oxford is the seventh most visited city in the UK, with a total of 9.5 million visitors a year.

This includes visitors from other countries, and those from inside the UK, generating an estimated £770m of income for local businesses.