tourism
The tourism sector is breaking records
kurt janson is policy director at Tourism Alliance
VisitBritain hails ‘record’ year
VisitBritain has welcomed a “record” year for tourism aſter reporting a 3 per cent growth in the number of overseas res- idents visiting during 2011. Inbound arrivals figures for
W
hile the final results are not quite in yet, it appears certain that 2011 will have been a record year for
both inbound and domestic tourism in the UK. Tis is not to say that all sectors of the tourism industry are booming, indeed many are finding the current economic conditions very challenging, but the overall figures make very positive reading. For the inbound market, the provisional
International Passenger Survey results for 2011 show that the number of visitors to the country increased by 3 per cent to 30.6 million, while their expenditure rose by 5 per cent to a new record of £17.8bn. Tis figure is nearly £2bn more than when the economic crisis began in 2007. Even more impressive was the growth
of the domestic tourism industry during 2011. While the UK Tourism Survey figures are currently only available up until the start of November, they show that domes- tic tourism numbers are 7 per cent higher than 2010 and spending is up a massive 14 per cent for the year. If these trends con- tinue for the final two months, and there is no reason to suppose that they wont, then the number of domestic tourism will have increased by 8.4 million trips and spending will be up by £2.9bn at a record £23.7bn. To put this into context, the UK econ-
omy increased by 0.9 per cent during 2011. Te construction, service and manufactur- ing sectors reported growth of 1.3 per cent, 1.6 per cent and 2.3 per cent respectively. Another way to look at this growth is to
examine the impact of the tourism indus- try on job creation. Te government has just released the unemployment figures for 2011, which show unemployment in the UK increased by 180,000 during 2011 to 2.7 million. By contrast – based on the cre- ation of a new full-time position for every additional £50,000 the sector generates – the £3.8bn growth in revenue for the sector indicates it created 76,000 new jobs. While the economic outlook is still far
from certain, these figures certainly show that the UK tourism sector is playing its part in rebuilding the nation’s economy.
10
December were up 2 per cent on the same period in 2010, which ensured a positive end to a year in which 30.6 million people visited the UK. VisitBritain also saw vis-
itor expenditure increase 5 per cent increase to £17.8bn, equating to an average spend of £580 per visit and 2 per cent up on the previous record. Emerging markets such as Brazil (51 per
Inbound and outbound tourism is poised to benefit from the wedding
cent), Russia (20 per cent) and China (32 per cent) contributed to the growth in UK tourism, although European markets remained flat. VisitBritain director of strategy and commu-
nications Patricia Yates said: “We want to make sure we capitalise on these gains by helping
boost jobs across the country and create a last- ing tourism legacy for many years to come. “We are encouraged that the along with vital
long-term growth markets helping our posi- tive return, the number of visitors coming to Britain from North America has risen.” Details:
http://bit.ly/wuX385
New tourism marketing strategy launched for Bath
Bath Tourism Plus has launched its new Destination Marketing Strategy in a bid to grow the value of tourism to the city’s economy to £400m over the next two years. Te blueprint has been developed as a des- tination-wide plan and will provide leadership
and marketing tools to deliver its targets, while working alongside local businesses. A 12 per cent increase in the value of over-
night visitors and increasing the value of day visitors are among the aims of the strategy. Details:
http://bit.ly/yCGbbB
£4.5m scheme for Galloway Forest Park
A new visitor complex to be built at Kirroughtree and a major refit of Clatteringshaws are set to form part of a major £4.5m investment at Scotland’s Galloway Forest Park. Te proposals, which have
been drawn up by Forestry Commission Scotland (FCS), form part of a wider strategy to enhance the park’s visi- tor experience and to double tourist expenditure across the local economy by 2015. FCS is part of the Scottish
Government’s Environment and Forestry Directorate and is responsible for the manage- ment of the country’s national forest estate. Work on the improved visitor facilities,
Read Leisure Opportunities online:
www.leisureopportunities.co.uk/digital Edinburgh-based JM Architects are behind designs of the new facilities FCS district manager Rob Soutar said: “[Te
which also includes upgrading Glentrool’s cen- tre, is due to be completed in early 2014.
park is] an amazing asset and are a key compo- nent in supporting the area’s tourism sector.” Details:
http://bit.ly/9xlhEK
Twitter: @leisureopps © CYBERTREK 2012
image: kamira/
shutterstock.com
image: jm architects
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