Chester Zoo has been voted the most popular English visitor attraction outside London for the third year running beating Kew Gardens and Stonehenge.

In a roaring success for the Upton-based landmark almost 1.5million visitors travelled to the Zoo to see everything from the tiniest spider to the biggest elephant in 2013, new figures reveal.

More people visited the Chester attraction last year than the Houses of Parliament, Tate Britain, the Eden Project, Stonehenge and the Museum of Science after a staggering 1,409,249 people walked through its doors.

And the figures revealed today (Wednesday, March 5) by the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions (AVLA) show Chester outstripped London Zoo by over 100,000 visitors – being named the most popular English attraction outside of the capital.

Directors at the city attraction have put down last year’s success to the number of new arrivals at the zoo, after a baby boom saw tiny tiger and cheetah cubs alongside rhino calves welcomed into the thriving community.

Chester Zoo’s managing director Jamie Christon, said: “We are delighted to take the top spot yet again and I think that’s proof that we’re doing things right.

“Last year we had a host of breeding successes including tiger and cheetah cubs and rhino calves, all of which have been important for conservation but also a big draw for visitors.

“This year we have already seen the birth of a rare Grevy’s zebra foal and the arrival of two new Komodo dragons.”

And directors at the Zoo are sure the attraction will continue to thrive with the construction of the �30M Islands project – believed to be the largest and most ambitious development in UK zoo history – well underway.

Mr Christon added: “We’re constantly evolving and offering people new and exciting things to come and experience.

“In previous years this has included world first attractions such as our display of animatronic bugs and with the opening of Islands fast approaching, we can guarantee that there are very exciting times ahead.”

The most popular attraction in the Uk was the British Museum, with 6,701,036 passing through its doors in 2013 alone.