THE record bad weather has given a major and surprising boost to tourism in Winchester.

Visitor numbers in the city are booming as people have avoided the seaside and the New Forest in favour of indoor attractions.

Numbers visiting the Tourist Information Centre for May, June and July, increased by more than 1,000 on the same period last year, a trend reflected at other indoor attractions around the city.

Alison Woods, TIC manager, said: "When the weather is warm and sunny as it is this week, visitors head for the beach.

"But when it is wet, heritage cities such as Winchester benefit as they have so much to offer that is not weather-dependent.

"Visitors can choose from numerous museums or enjoy a steaming hot chocolate in one of our cafés whilst watching the world splash past.

"The city also offers a unique shopping experience with many independent stores and boutiques as well as art galleries," she said.

One attraction that has been boosted by the bad weather has been the Intech science centre at Morn Hill.

Its visitor numbers for April-July were 21,500, compared to 15,500 for the same period in 2006, a whopping increase of 38 per cent.

Andy Lane, marketing manager, said: "The weather has been a decisive factor.

"At Easter it was very hot and we did not do very well.

"The decision time is breakfast. If the weather is bad, we know we are in for a busy day."

Mr Lane said Intech was hoping to become an outdoor destination too, with exhibits in the grounds. Next March it is due to open a planetarium, as reported in last week's Chronicle.

The City Mill in Bridge Street said its figures for the first seven months of the year were six per cent up on 2006.

A spokeswoman said: "We are very pleased. We think it is partly the weather and partly the fact we have marketed ourselves better."

The cathedral said yesterday (Wednesday) that it did not have a current figure for visitor numbers available, but last week announced that 115,000 visited last year, up 10,000 on the previous 12 months. Nobody from Marwell Zoo was available for comment at the time of going to press.

Figures from the Environment Agency climate station at Otterbourne show that by July 24, there had already been 567mm of rain against the long-term annual average of 801mm.

In percentage figures it means that already 70 per cent of the average rainfall has fallen in around 55 per cent of the year.

The city council estimates day visitors contribute £122 million each year to the local economy, a figure that has been steadily increasing over time.