We hope business has been good since the last update in November. The 2017 season is now upon us and there are some great things happening in Cheltenham that are being uncovering for the year ahead. From attraction and restaurant openings to new major events (announcements expected imminently), there are lots of good reasons to entice visitors to Cheltenham both from the region and internationally.
Postponement of the February Tourism Forum
The Cheltenham Tourism Forum on 28th February 2017 had been planned to be held at Pittville Pump Rooms however, due to ongoing discussions around how tourism in Cheltenham will be funded, we thought it was wise to postpone this until we have something more concrete to share.
Update on progress and work to date
Here’s a snap shot of some of the things that have been happening since the last update in November:
- We’ve been working with the Cheltenham BID to commission research about visitors to the town: what they feel when they arrive, who they are, and potential visitor perceptions – this makes for interesting reading with lots that confirms our current thinking
- A first draft of a 5- year Visitor Economy Growth Strategy has been outlined and agreed in principle by the Tourism Partnership. We are now in the process of working this through with The Cheltenham Trust and meeting with key potential partners in the town to see how this might be funded
- We’ve held a workshop on ‘brand Cheltenham’ and with a smaller group we’re working through the values and characteristics that we can use to guide us as we move forward
- A marketing group meeting has been held to test the strategy and initial brand ideas – generally it was well received; however there were lots of questions which we are currently trying to iron out so that we can share revised thinking with the wider visitor economy/tourism community
- We’ve met several times with Cotswolds Tourism as part of their Executive Officer group to look at their plans and to see how we can give Cheltenham more profile and help them to increase visitors to the region
- We’ve also attended the first meeting around encouraging more coach visitors; this was led by the Cheltenham BID and discussions included coach parking and what it would take to gain ‘coach friendly status’
- Receiving continued support from Claire Thayers as tourism representative for Cheltenham Chamber of Commerce and will continue discussions with them about how we work together in future.
If you have any questions please get in touch with Kelly Ballard via [email protected]
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If you are on Twitter please follow and tweet @Chelttourism for business to business news. Please let us know of any announcements, planned redevelopments or media coverage that we can share and celebrate. For business to visitor (consumer) tweets please follow and tweet @cheltenhamTIC
Get to know what Cotswolds Tourism can do for you 7th March – Register before 5th March
The Cotswolds Huddle and Tourism Forum will take place on 7th March at Cotswold Wildlife Park. It starts at 11.30 and will last for a couple of hours. There will be tea, coffee and a little something sweet courtesy of the park. Cotswold Tourism will be update guests on the work they’ve done in the past months and you will get a chance to meet with both myself and the Cotswolds Tourism team and speak with us personally. There’s also the opportunity for networking following the event. Register your interest for free entry here.
Midsummer Fiesta, 1st July 2017 – Marketing Opportunity
This established local event is a free day of music, dance acts and various activities which can attract up to 10,000 people throughout the day. Included on the day is a marketplace with approximately 100 stalls, which can be hired from £25 to sell your wares or market your product. If you are interested in participating you will find booking forms on the website http://www.midsummerfiesta.com/marketplace-bar-catering/. Also please email Claire Cook [email protected] if you are interested in supporting this event through sponsorship, as there are various options available.
We will be in touch with further updates shortly. In the meantime please follow us on Twitter and subscribe to this site to ensure you receive all the latest information.
Marketing Cheltenham 