So very proud to see my Grande Departe Yorkshire Le Tour de France images being used this summer by Visit Britain to promote the Uk abroad.
Photographer Matt Cant @mattcantt Assistant Stewart Mackeller @stew_MacKellar. Art Director Natasha Freeman @natashakfreeman
National tourism agency, VisitBritain, has today launched a
series of new GREAT campaign adverts, worth £1 million across Heathrow,
promoting Yorkshire to its international passengers.
The promotional GREAT campaign
images will be live across 134 digital screens in all terminals at
Heathrow, illustrating the natural beauty of Yorkshire’s celebrated
countryside, as well as its retail and architectural strengths.
Striking
images of Brodsworth Hall and Gardens in South Yorkshire, Buttertubs
Pass in the Yorkshire Dales, Sutton Bank in the North York Moors and
Leeds Victoria Arcade in West Yorkshire1 all feature in the adverts,
which aim to encourage tourism to Yorkshire before, during and after its
hosting of the Tour de France Grand Départ in July.
The
new poster ads make up the second round of a 12-month advertising
programme worth £4 million, gifted by Heathrow to help VisitBritain
promote Britain’s nations and regions to international visitors.
International
tourism to Yorkshire is on the rise. In 2013 the region welcomed 1.2
million visits from overseas - an increase of 11.7% on the previous year
and almost back to 2008’s pre-economic crisis record. Visitors spent an
average of 8.6 nights in Yorkshire on these visits and the total amount
spent in 2013 reached a new record of £584 million - a significant
uplift of 34.8% on the previous year.
Leeds
and York consistently make the top twenty most visited cities in
Britain by international visitors. In 2013 York was the 14th most visited city - up four places from 2012, when it held 18th place. Leeds reached 11th place in 2013, moving up from 12th place in 2012. There were 36% more visitors to the city of York in 2013 (271,000 visits) compared to 2012.
Joss Croft, Marketing Director of VisitBritain said: “This
is Yorkshire’s time to shine. Building on the record spend figures
across the region, we want to enhance the tourism opportunities
surrounding the Grand Départ and inspire our international visitors to
explore Britain as they pass through Heathrow airport.
“Our
partnership with Heathrow will continue our promotional activity to
ensure that the economic growth from tourism and the jobs that the
industry delivers are spread right across the country.”
Colin Matthews, Heathrow’s CEO said: “Around
13 million passengers a year already use Heathrow as their gateway to
Britain’s regions and have the option to fly directly to Leeds Bradford
Airport from Heathrow. This partnership with VisitBritain is designed to
inspire passengers to explore further afield in the UK during their
visit - or on future trips.
“We
were delighted with the first round of adverts and the second round
does not disappoint. Yorkshire is a beautiful region and we want to play
our part to educate and encourage our passengers of the breadth and
beauty that the UK has to offer. We hope these ads will support
Yorkshire to benefit from their direct link to the UK’s only hub
airport.”
The first three months
of Heathrow’s partnership advertising with VisitBritain launched in
March, promoting the previously flood hit areas of Devon, Cornwall,
Llanddwyn Island (Wales Coast Path) and Glastonbury, to show they were
back on track and open for business.
About VisitBritain
VisitBritain is the national tourism agency, responsible for marketing Britain worldwide and developing Britain’s visitor economy.
A non-departmental public body, funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, we work with partners in the UK and overseas to ensure that Britain is marketed in an inspirational and relevant way around the world. Our partners include government agencies such as UKTI and British Council, airlines and operators, global brands such as Samsung and the English Premier League as well as the official tourism bodies for London, England, Scotland and Wales.
Our priority is to deliver a four-year match-funded global marketing programme which showcases Britain around the world, attracting new visitors from the tourism growth markets of Asia and Latin America and reinvigorating our appeal in core markets such as the USA, France and Germany. This campaign aims to secure an additional £2 billion in visitor spend.
