CYCLING fever is building as the Tour of Britain prepares to come to Sussex for the first time.

Scores of businesses will line some 100 miles of county roads with promotions, parties and celebrations of cycling on September 13.

Last year’s tour created an average visitor spend of £3 million per stage.

And on the strength of the Tour de France’s Grand Depart from Yorkshire, where millions lined the route, the Sussex stage could surpass expectations.

But some tourism leaders said there has not been enough time to prepare and publicity has been lacking. One business with a front-row seat for the celebrations is Velo café, on The Level, in Brighton, which is planning a ‘spin up in the city’ with Dark Star Brewery ticketed event for up to 500 people. Velo manager Tom Hasson said: “Events like the Tour of Britain are great for showing kids how exciting cycling can be.

“I remember when the Tour de France came to Brighton 20 years ago and how that inspired me as a kid.”

In Newhaven, there will be a high-street fete and cycle-themed entertainment while big screens will broadcast events live in Seaford and Eastbourne.

Haywards Heath will tie up cycling events with its Town Day and a military parade, while Midhurst and Petworth will host spectator festivities as the riders race past.

Dean Orgill, chairman of the Brighton and Hove Economic Partnership, said: “Welcoming the tour with its growing reputation is an ideal opportunity for the city to show an international audience why Brighton has such a deserved reputation for hosting significant events so successfully.

“It is important to add new and different events to our regular successes to ensure Brighton stays in the forefront of the minds of event planners and their audiences to stay competitive with other cities and towns.”

The race coincides with the Brighton and Hove Food and Drink Festival Autumn Harvest – although organisers admitted the announcement took them by surprise.

Director Nick Mosley said: “None of us had an inkling that the council was working towards it coming to the city, hence there wasn't really a lead in time to develop any specific tie-in with the festival.

“That said, it sounds like a really high-profile event that will not only deliver more visitors to the city but also get Brighton on the TV and in the national press for the right reasons so that can only be a good thing.”

Jeremy Ogden, owner of the Limehouse guesthouse, on the Old Steine, is offering free early check-ins and late check-outs.

He said: “As a cyclist and business owner I am delighted these sort of events are coming to the city.

“However, we need to be much better at promoting them and I feel we could and should be doing a lot more for the Tour of Britain compared to how Yorkshire embraced the Grand Depart for the Tour de France.”

Councillor Geoffrey Bowden, chairman of the city’s economic development and culture committee, said: “It’s a great coup to have a stage from the nation’s premier bike race finishing on Brighton seafront.

“It’s the first time the Tour of Britain has visited Sussex and the exposure from national and international media will showcase the city to a vast audience.

Last year there were up to 250,000 spectators per stage and an average net visitor expenditure of over £3 million per stage, so it is a fantastic opportunity for the businesses that support the visitor economy and the city as a whole and it won’t only be on the day itself.

“We can also expect our hotels to be filled by the teams’ advanced parties and the race’s officials.”