Visitbritain, the UK national tourism agency, recently welcomed buyers from more than 30 international markets at the Best of Britain & Ireland (BOBI) Travel Trade Forum.
According to VisitBritain both inbound numbers and spend should show growth in 2010 as international travellers realise that Britain offers great value as well as an abundance of history, heritage, culture, food, activities and stunning coastline.
More than 220 buyers from markets including Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Hong Kong, India, Italy and Russia visited the BOBI Travel Trade Forum which took place at London’s Olympia.
The focus for the show was on new product and experiences but most importantly on inspiring agents to sell Britain with good value and a warm welcome high on the list of assets.
One of the key elements at the show this year was the launch of a new definitive website for tourism businesses looking to benefit from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
The new website www.tourism2012games.org includes vital brand protection guidelines which provide tourism-specific examples of what can be communicated to customers about tourism products and services in relation to the games.
Sandie Dawe, chief executive, VisitBritain said: “The 2012 games are a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to host the world’s biggest party, to showcase Britain and improve our welcome.
“There is a potential £2.1-billion ($3.2-billion) benefit at stake so, with a little over two years to go, we aim to make tourism businesses aware of the opportunities and challenges.
“The new Tourism2012Games website will help everyone in tourism understand exactly how they can benefit from the games.”
Another highlight at the show was the Historic Royal Palaces organisation showcasing a decade of its developments. With the start of a new decade Historic Royal Palaces is gearing up for an exciting 10 years of events for travellers to include in itineraries and days-out. These include the complete representation of Kensington Palace as a palace for everyone with transformed visitor facilities and the conservation of the exterior and permanent representation of the interior of the White Tower at the Tower of London.
Baroque, in its widest sense, will be embraced at Hampton Court Palace and events to celebrate 2012 and HM The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee include the representation of the Jewel House, home to the stunning and historic Crown Jewels.
With exciting new exhibitions, appealing seasonal events, multi-visit and package options and account facilities for volume-producing travel trade companies, there are so many ways in which travel industry partners and visitors can all benefit from Historic Royal Palaces.
Also participating were the Welsh Rarebits and Wales Great Little Places, two brands which exclusively cover Wales.
Welsh Rarebits consists of 54 full-service hotels, all independently owned. Each property is unique and operated by owners who serve, assist and provide meals for their guests.
Wales Great Little Places has a selection of 65 hand-picked gems consisting of small hotels, inns, farms, guest houses and cottages. They are situated across the country in various rural and more central locations and tend not to have full service restaurants, but offer self catering and most have recommended dining options nearby.
The company also organises tours for small groups which include golf as well as gourmet food tours.
According to Mike Morgan who runs Welsh Rarebits: “We are increasingly getting visitors from the Middle East but it is still a developing market for us. Our properties tend to be located in rural areas across the country and we believe this adds to the appeal. Having said that, we also have a property an hour away from Heathrow.”