Value of tourism in Lincolnshire reaches £971 million
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Newly published research shows the value of tourism within Lincolnshire’s visitor economy last year was worth £971 million – an increase of £13 million (1.3%) compared with 2008- and contributes 14% of the county’s overall economy, second only to the food industry.
The total number of seaside and attraction related tourist visits to Lincolnshire increased by 200,000 to 17.2 million creating 349 new jobs.
The value of the tourism within East Lindsey District’s visitor economy is now worth £438.8 million – an increase of £1.7 million from the previous year.
Visit Lincolnshire, who has released these results in partnership with East Midlands Tourism, is the organisation that champions tourism and the wider visitor economy across the county on behalf of local authorities, tourism businesses and other stakeholders.
Marc Etches, Interim Chief Executive of Visit Lincolnshire said “This is good news. Our marketing campaigns promoting Lincolnshire as a place to visit have delivered excellent results earning £44 for every pound spent. More than 17,000 jobs depend on holiday and attraction related tourism across Lincolnshire and it is vital that we all recognise the economic value of this industry sector.”
Last year Lincolnshire Tourism rebranded itself as Visit Lincolnshire and relaunched the website VisitLincolnshire.com. In addition, the organisation improved the quality of the county’s flagship visitor guides; launched online booking opportunities for businesses; generated extensive national and regional PR and launched Visit Lincolnshire’s social media activity.
The research shows that Lincolnshire’s most significant visitor spend is on shopping (22%) (grown to £210 million from £202 million) and food and drink (18%) (grown to £173 million in 2009 from £165 million in 2008). The largest increase in visitor spend is in recreational activities an increase of 9% from the previous year.
“The growth in visitor spend on shopping, food and drink and other recreational activities outline the importance of recognising that traditional tourism is one element of the wider visitor economy which includes business and education related tourism as well as events, sports, cultural and other leisure activity,” continued Marc Etches. “Local knowledge is a vital ingredient to future success not least because 34% of overnight stays in Lincolnshire were in the homes of friends or relatives.”
“Despite this success we must not be complacent; there is still a need to keep Lincolnshire fresh and competitive against other destinations. Since 2009 we’ve upped our game and we’re looking forward to exceeding these figures next year by continuing to work closely with our members and partners.”
Leader of East Lindsey District Council, Councillor Doreen Stephenson, said: “By investing in, and working in partnership with Visit Lincolnshire and our other partners we’ve been able to develop some important tourism and marketing opportunities for our District, including SO Festival 2010 and Wolds Words Festival of Reading, Writing and Performance and a new programme of Town Centre Management.
“Tourism is a key economic driver in East Lindsey and thousands of businesses and jobs rely on people visiting our area. This research is positive for our communities but there is more we need to do."
“The District Council will continue to look for opportunities locally, regionally and nationally, to encourage investment in our area and also attract more visitors. We need to ensure East Lindsey remains one of the UK’s top visitor destinations.”
