Tourism marketing campaign to create 50,000 jobs
The campaign, which will be fully revealed in the spring, is the result of a joint partnership between VisitBritain and a raft of companies including British Airways, DFDS, lastminute.com, P&O and hotel group Radisson Edwardian.
The companies have collectively pledged £50m to the campaign, matching the public money already committed by VisitBritain.
Erected in response to the Government’s challenge to boost tourism for the forthcoming Royal Wedding, the Queen’s Jubilee and the London Olympics in 2012, the marketing campaign is expected to boost the number of overseas visitors to Britain by 1 million every year.
Growth markets
David Cameron, who in August pledged his full support to Britain’s tourism industry, said: “This year and next will see the eyes of the world focused on Britain as never before.
“A Royal Wedding, Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee and of course the London Olympic and Paralympic Games offer us a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, not just for national pride and celebration, but also to promote this country as the perfect tourist destination.
“Last year we challenged British businesses to help us put together the best tourism marketing campaign ever for Britain – something that will make us the must-see destination for visitors from new growth markets in Asia and Latin America, as well as core ones like Europe and the USA.
Global attention
“The response has been magnificent, with pledges of cash and kind from companies that mean we are well on the way to our target.”
Jasminder Singh, chairman and chief executive of Radisson Edwardian, said the hype surrounding the upcoming events will give Britain and its hospitality industry a chance to use the global media exposure to boost its image abroad.
“We at Radisson Edwardian are proud to be playing our part in promoting this country as a tourism destination, working in partnership with both trade and Government, we are looking forward to showcasing our hotels,” he said. “We have 13 individual hotels in fantastic locations across London and Manchester which we hope will benefit from this partnership and provide both sides with some key opportunities for growth.”
VisitBritain predicts the number of inbound travellers will reach 30 million next year, a rise of 1 per cent, with the amount they spend rising by 2 per cent to £17.2bn.
