Local tourism businesses are being invited to an event at Skipton Castle this month to help shape a new strategy to attract more visitors to the county.
The new North Yorkshire Council wants to gather information and views from key organisations and enterprises involved in the tourism sector to develop the first countywide 'destination management plan'.
The strategy aims to boost the multi-million pound tourism industry and support tens of thousands of workers who are employed in the sector, while also attracting a wider and more diverse range of visitors to the county.
The council’s leader, Cllr Carl Les, said: “The opportunity to develop the first county-wide plan to promote tourism is a major milestone for North Yorkshire.
“The views of businesses and organisations involved in tourism will be key to developing the strategy and the future of the industry as a whole.
“We have such a breadth of tourism businesses and attractions which we can be rightly proud of, but we want to ensure that the sector can grow and flourish in the future and help support the region’s wider economy.”
Invitations have been sent out to tourism businesses for the workshops, which are free and will be staged both in person and online.
Attendees will be asked about their priorities and aspirations for the tourism industry as well as the strengths, opportunities and challenges being faced by North Yorkshire’s visitor economy.
Locally, a session is taking place on Wednesday 17th May at Skipton Castle between 3pm and 5pm.
A survey of North Yorkshire's visitor economy is also being conducted to allow a greater understanding of the views of industry. The questionnaire will focus on accommodation, attractions and experiences, food and drink, festivals and events, as well as heritage and culture, landscape and countryside, towns and villages, access and transportation and visitor services.
The draft destination management plan is due to be finalised by the end of June, before being presented to councillors the following month. A bid is then due to be submitted to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport in September for North Yorkshire to be home to a Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP), which will involve both the private and public sectors and will need to follow a new national process to be eligible for support and potential funding from the Government.
Attendance at the workshop is free of charge, and invited guests can find out more information and confirm attendance at www.eventbrite.com/cc/north-yorkshire-destination-management-plan-2137459 online.
The questionnaire on North Yorkshire’s visitor economy is available at https://cvent.me/YB2V7D, and will take no longer than 10 minutes to complete.
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