Brighton and Hove tourism boom (From The Argus)
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Brighton and Hove tourism boom
1:39pm Tuesday 15th January 2013 in News By Neil Vowles
The Brighton Wheel, introduced to attract tourists in 2012
The recession has seen a tourism boom in Brighton and Hove, new figures reveal.
The city is bucking the trend of seaside decline, recording a massive rise in holidaymakers despite the gloomy economic climate.
Brighton and Hove saw an 11% increase in overnight visitors between 2007 and 2011 – sending the number of tourists past the million mark.
This brought an extra £25 million to the economy and created an extra 2,500 tourist jobs.
The council said although no official visitor figures were available yet for 2012, early indications pointed to numbers levelling off but not falling.
Tourism bosses attributed the success of the city’s tourism sector through the recession to a strong programme of events and festivals, successful marketing of the destination, the rise of the staycation and the strength of the Euro which made the UK an attractive location for European travellers.
Tough summer
However, hoteliers warned the city’s tourism industry was struggling after a “disastrous” summer thanks to the Olympics, and business leaders warned that 2013 might not get any easier.
The report, published by Travelodge, using official statistics, today names Brighton and Hove as the UK’s sixth fastest-growing destination ahead of London and seaside rivals Blackpool, Torquay and Newquay which had all seen visitor numbers decline.
Adam Bates, head of city’s tourism body Visit Brighton, said the city can develop a high level of tourist income the whole year through and move away from the traditional summer high and winter off-season.
Hoteliers, however, said the outlook was far from positive, with poor summer months because of the Olympics and wet weather leaving hotels without a war chest to survive the quiet winter months.
Smaller businesses
Mark Jones, of Brighton and Hove Hotels Association, said: “The recession has been anything but positive.
“Rates have plummeted and hoteliers have needed to cut their costs to plan for the future, almost as a matter of survival for smaller businesses.”
Nick Head, of the Sussex Tourism Partnership and the Ambassador Hotel, said that at a Brighton and Hove Hotels Association meeting at the end of 2012, hotel owners were reporting drops in visitor numbers through the summer of up to 30%.
Tony Mernagh, executive director at Brighton and Hove Economic Partnership, said the tourism industry had a bigger impact on the city than merely creating jobs in that industry.
Art and culture
He said: “It supports the cultural and artistic offer of the city which the domestic residents couldn’t sustain alone and that artistic offer makes Brighton an attractive place to start a business.”
Mr Mernagh said the city’s retail sector had also suffered last year and 2013 might not be any better with people adjusting their expectations to lower disposable incomes.
However, as incomes diminished, Mr Mernagh said tourists were becoming more discerning which favoured Brighton and Hove’s broad range of tourist attractions.
Geoffrey Bowden, the chairman of the council’s economic development and culture committee, said without official ONS figures for 2012 it was dangerous to draw any conclusions about last year on just anecdotal evidence.
He added: “It is always good to hear that our city is a popular tourist destination and the latest available data relating to 2011 certainly confirms this.”
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Comments(20)
Dealing with idiots
says...
1:56pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Mylex58
says...
2:39pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Surely not!
says...
3:35pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Dealing with idiots wrote:What about that famous petition of yours...?:)
No doubt Ian Davey will be trotting out the same old guff about shop occupancy which is ancient history stats. £200.000+ hole in parking takings. What about the lost takings of the businesses in the city? Still no sorry from Kitcat and his ragged band. Next electon don't leave it to the students and guilty uppper middle classes
Mo.StGrumble
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4:03pm Tue 15 Jan 13
RottingdeanRant
says...
4:17pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Maxwell's Ghost
says...
4:50pm Tue 15 Jan 13
The Argus reported last year that the footfall in the city had declined and the same was being reported by the tourism office.
I also know some of the hotel groups have experienced low occupancy levels in 2012 despite the Olympics and Jubilee and one was reported last week to have shut suddenly to become serviced apartments.
As for Torquay and Newquay, have you seen the rail prices to get there and once you are there you really need a car and petrol is so expensive. It's cheaper to fly abroad.
B&H is fortunate to be near London which has a population of 5 million who don't mind paying £45 for a day visit to the seaside.
Mylex58
says...
5:13pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Maxwell's Ghost wrote:Your figures are a bit questionable Maxwell. I don't know when you think London's population last stood at five million? According to the Office of National Statistics, the 2011 census showed London's population as being 8.2 million. And what does your £45 figure relate to? I think that's a very conservative figure. In fact it would be quite interesting to get some views on how much it costs a couple or family from London to spend a summer afternoon in Brighton?
11 per cent in four years which can easily be wiped out in a single recession year.
The Argus reported last year that the footfall in the city had declined and the same was being reported by the tourism office.
I also know some of the hotel groups have experienced low occupancy levels in 2012 despite the Olympics and Jubilee and one was reported last week to have shut suddenly to become serviced apartments.
As for Torquay and Newquay, have you seen the rail prices to get there and once you are there you really need a car and petrol is so expensive. It's cheaper to fly abroad.
B&H is fortunate to be near London which has a population of 5 million who don't mind paying £45 for a day visit to the seaside.
Dealing with idiots
says...
5:43pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Surely not! wrote:You are missing the point councillor. No manipulation of the facts can make up for your poor understanding of how businesss run. In answer to your question, fine thanks. Better than many of the consultation responses you and the green thugs depend on on LOL.
Dealing with idiots wrote: No doubt Ian Davey will be trotting out the same old guff about shop occupancy which is ancient history stats. £200.000+ hole in parking takings. What about the lost takings of the businesses in the city? Still no sorry from Kitcat and his ragged band. Next electon don't leave it to the students and guilty uppper middle classesWhat about that famous petition of yours...?:)
Phani Tikkala
says...
8:44pm Tue 15 Jan 13
I don't know who said this, but agenda item 42(b) (a "Notice of Motion" from the conservatives on the impact of parking charges on the local economy) from the Council meeting on 25th October 2012 says:
"“This Council notes with grave concern that visitor numbers in Brighton & Hove fell by 10.8% year on year in the first seven months of 2012"
Anyone care to explain?
Phani Tikkala
says...
9:02pm Tue 15 Jan 13
"visitor numbers to Brighton & Hove decreased significantly more (over 14%) after the new parking charges were introduced in April"
Instead of "Brighton & Hove Tourist Boom" shouldn't the headline be "Shock fall in tourist numbers"?
Martha Gunn
says...
9:09pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Second the Green council statement that tourism figures were 'levelling off' stands in dramatic contrast to what they themselves have always said in the past and in blatant contradiction of the opinion of everyone else really in the know.
And as usual not a word from the Green Party apparatchiks who leave hapless Council officers to deal with the flak. Is this quite the most shameful bunch of Councillors we have ever had in our City? No answers - never any willingness to answer.
Bt'n-breezy
says...
10:25pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Another other thing I notice is quite often when I go to stay at a chain hotel the decor is to some extent soul-sapping in its mundanity and if they employed an interior designer of flair they would surely make more money.
Perhaps because the era of the car and trains has captured our imagination bus travel has in some respects been left behind. Brighton has a bus station of poor quality which to my mind is very much a lost opprtunity for a tourist town. Are these ideas a replacement for a new big attraction? Perhaps so?
hubby
says...
11:14pm Tue 15 Jan 13
Morpheus
says...
9:18am Wed 16 Jan 13
Phani Tikkala
says...
9:42am Wed 16 Jan 13
hubby wrote:An 11% FALL is "getting it right"? Morning Jason!
Looks to me like the Greens are getting things right.
Larry the Lamb
says...
9:46am Wed 16 Jan 13
The population for various reasons is increasing as per this clip from ONS
"Buoyed by increased life expectancy, sustained immigration and robust fertility levels, the number of residents jumped 7.1% from 52.4 million in 2001 to 56.1 million in 2011 – the highest growth rate of the past century, said the Office of National Statistics (ONS"
So with that in mind and the fact that Brighton it's self is expanding faster than most towns I don't think it's tourism. We shall see soon any way once the 2012 figures are revealed. Every one is expecting those to be down due to the bad summer oh and the ridiculous seafront parking decision. With such high parking charges charges the Greens are likely to end up in the Brown stuff.
Fairfax Sakes
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9:51am Wed 16 Jan 13
Mylex58
says...
10:21am Wed 16 Jan 13
Fairfax Sakes wrote:Most resorts around the world like the idea of attracting high-spending premium visitors. All very well Fairfax to say "get rid of the riff-raff" but, arguably, that's the sort of tourist Brighton has always attracted - and always will. High-spending tourists tend to stay in high-class resorts. And Brighton isn't in that league. Quirky maybe. Quality? No.
A reduction in tourist numbers, via an emphasis of quality over quantity (i.e. less of the working class London rabble, blind drunk overweight hen mobs, etc) would do the town a darn sight of good. Get rid of all those cheap tat seafront haberdashers and kebaberies. An increase in parking for premium seafront spots wouldn't go amiss either.
Fairfax Sakes
says...
10:03am Thu 17 Jan 13
Mylex58 wrote:Exactly. Get well rid of riff raff first, then redevelop and remarket Brighton as the destination of choice for the better ones
Fairfax Sakes wrote:Most resorts around the world like the idea of attracting high-spending premium visitors. All very well Fairfax to say "get rid of the riff-raff" but, arguably, that's the sort of tourist Brighton has always attracted - and always will. High-spending tourists tend to stay in high-class resorts. And Brighton isn't in that league. Quirky maybe. Quality? No.
A reduction in tourist numbers, via an emphasis of quality over quantity (i.e. less of the working class London rabble, blind drunk overweight hen mobs, etc) would do the town a darn sight of good. Get rid of all those cheap tat seafront haberdashers and kebaberies. An increase in parking for premium seafront spots wouldn't go amiss either.
Hoarder12345444 says...
1:47pm Tue 15 Jan 13