CONTENTS NEWS 4


4 TOP STORIES 6 NEWS


Staycation surge; overcoming overtourism; inbound numbers reach record levels; UKinbound business barometer on Brexit; ExploreGB heads to Harrogate


Industry hails move to tackle ‘rogue’ landlords; Gulf travel agents bet on Sport of Kings; visitor attraction planned for Liver Building


9 NEWS IN BRIEF


New Tourism Society boss; Visit Wales events; trends at Excursions 2019; group travel app launched; Wales Tourism Alliance chair appointed; Tourism Ireland promotes Christian heritage


13


NEWS IN DEPTH 11SPECIAL REPORT 13FACE TO FACE


14COMMENT


Bottlenecks & bucket lists EDITOR’S


NOTE H


How the £40m Discover England Fund is boosting business


Jennifer Cormack, Lake District China Forum chair, and Colin Fox, Lake District Japan Forum chair, discuss targeting Chinese and Japanese tourists


Bob Cotton – the first patron of Experience Oxfordshire – calls on local businesses to work together to boost the county’s £2bn tourism industry


IN FOCUS 16WALES


ow do we measure success in tourism? We’ve reported about record inbound numbers in


Welsh tourism bosses hope visitors will spend more in 2018 after a drop in 2017. Our feature also looks at rail trips, Cardiff airport, National Botanic Garden, St Fagans, National Museum Cardiff and Welsh mining heritage


18HERITAGE TOURISM 24 24EAST OF ENGLAND


A consortium of historic cities is promoting touring itineraries under the new England Originals brand. We also cover heritage news from Oxford, VisitEngland, Hever Castle, Eltham Palace and the British Motor Museum


Lincoln has a ‘winning formula’, Suffolk reports a boom in visitors; Cambridge tackles overtourism; Norwich is in festival mode; Grantham celebrates Sir Isaac Newton; and Unesco Cities of Literature plan ‘Nottwich’ in 2019


IN THE SPOTLIGHT 27SPOTLIGHT


27


Editor | Samantha Mayling | editorial@travelgbi.com Editor-in-chief | Lucy Huxley | lucy.huxley@travelweekly.co.uk Account Manager | Sam Chapman | sam.chapman@travelweekly.co.uk Managing Director | Stuart Parish | stuart.parish@travelweekly.co.uk Editorial | editorial@travelgbi.com Subscriptions | travelgbi@subscriptionhelpline.co.uk Sales | 020 7881 4838 | sales@travelgbi.com


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Game of Thrones stars appear in the West End; Casualty actor plays lead role in Saturday Night Fever; Super Break offers Cirque du Soleil packages; Hugh Dennis joins Lesley Garrett in new comedy; Alexandra Burke returns to The Bodyguard; and Shakespeare in Love goes on tour


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2017 and a bumper summer for staycationers – but many destinations experiencing relentless growth are seeing a backlash about the impact of overtourism on local residents and the environment. Overtourism is not new but it seems to have become a more prevalent phenomenon this year, in the UK and overseas. Tackling it is tough – social media, the sharing economy, TV shows and marketing campaigns encourage more consumers than ever before to tick off their bucket lists at honeypot locations, and usually in peak season. Tourism bosses are trying tactics to alleviate the pressure, from moving bus stops to promoting shoulder season trips and ‘hidden gems’, while politicians debate taxes and regulation of sites such as Airbnb. Operators and group travel organisers are looking at off-the-beaten-track itineraries, with quirky, alternative experiences or tour guides who tell a great story to capture the imagination. But the dilemma remains that tourism is a multibillion-pound industry, bringing great economic benefits, so a delicate balance must be struck. The conundrum will be debated at industry events this autumn, including the International Conference on Responsible Tourism in Plymouth; Abta’s convention in Seville; and World Travel Market in London. Interestingly, WTM’s responsible tourism awards have a ‘Best For Managing Success’ category, for destinations and attractions which have managed “a significant increase in demand to maintain or enhance the guest experience and to avoid or reduce disquiet in the local community”. It will be fascinating to see different ways of measuring success – rather than just visitor numbers.


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