Press release 5 October 2015
ANOTHER RECORD YEAR FOR TOURISM TO WILTSHIRE
5 October 2015
Headline figures from a new report on the Economic Impact of Wiltshire’s Visitor Economy show that 2014 was another record year for Wiltshire tourism. The third consecutive record year.
The report was produced by The South West Research Company for VisitWiltshire. It provides an analysis of tourism activity in Swindon and Wiltshire for 2014 including comparisons with previous years, analysis of spend by type and area, competitor destinations and overall economic contribution. The report is based on the Cambridge Model which has been used across the South of England for a number of years.
The report shows that in 2014 the number of visitors, value of tourism spend and tourism’s economic impact all reached record levels. Tourism is up across the whole county and Wiltshire’s tourism season is getting longer.
Peter Wragg, VisitWiltshire’s Chairman and Swindon & Wiltshire Local Enterprise Partnership Board member, says “This report is hugely encouraging and gives further evidence of how important tourism is to our overall economy. Since 2011 Swindon & Wiltshire’s total tourism business turnover and GVA have increased by 30%. Wiltshire’s visitor economy is worth £1.5bn per annum and supports over 28,000 jobs.”
David Andrews, CEO VisitWiltshire, says, “This report is a terrific endorsement for our marketing and development activity and the efforts we and the industry have been making to win back market share after Wiltshire’s tourism downturn from 2005-2010. We are particularly pleased to see such strong growth in overnight stays which are up 5%. Growth across the county reached a record 19.9m visitors in 2014 and we are delighted that there is new evidence that we’re extending the visitor season.”
As well as being good news for existing tourism businesses across the county, the report will be welcomed by anyone looking at setting up a new tourism business in Wiltshire as it provides strong evidence of growth potential.
Headline results from The Economic Impact of Wiltshire’s Visitor Economy 2014 is available here. The full report will be available at the end of October.
For further information please contact Florence Wallace, Travel Trade & PR Manager, flowallace@visitwiltshire.co.uk Tel: 01722 341309 or 07436 588860
Note to editors: VisitWiltshire was established in August 2011 and is the official Tourist Board for Wiltshire. It is a private sector membership organisation representing over 600 partners. VisitWiltshire's priority is to grow the county's Visitor Economy by raising awareness of the destination and generating additional tourism visits and spend. Wiltshire's Visitor Economy currently generates an estimated £1.5billion and supports over 28,000 jobs.