HERE is the weekly Cumbria Tourism column. 

Balancing rising costs with the need to offer first-class visitor experiences will be the hot topic under the spotlight at Cumbria Tourism’s upcoming business summit for tourism operators next month.

The county’s Official Destination Management Organisation (DMO) will be bringing together more than a hundred tourism businesses for the event on Thursday 17 November at Cumbria’s newest Convention Centre, the former Cumberland Pencil Factory building in Keswick.

As well as hearing from fellow operators about how they’re tackling spiralling costs, headline speaker Lynn Tracey (Electricity North West) will focus on practical ways for businesses to cut their energy bills.

Businesses will also hear from Steve Ratcliffe (Lake District National Park) about developing eco-friendly energy efficiency measures within local planning regulations.

The newly refurbished art-deco building will also set the scene for all the latest insights from Cumbria Tourism’s 2022 Visitor Survey.

Attending businesses will be the first to hear feedback from 2,000+ face-to-face interviews carried out with visitors, to find out more about them and their travel intentions and motivations.

Crucially, the Cumbria Tourism team will outline how these insights are being used to inform destination marketing activity during the winter months.

The event will be rounded off with a ‘Question and Answer’ session with the expert speaker panel, led by Cumbria Tourism Chairman Dan Visser.

There will also be a chance for valuable face-to-face networking with other tourism businesses, along with a number of trade stands where operators can seek advice from some of Cumbria Tourism’s Strategic Partners and tourism-related suppliers.

Managing Director of Cumbria Tourism, Gill Haigh, says, “Rising costs are at the forefront of businesses’ minds right now, with customers also looking for maximum value for money.

“So the focus of this key event will give visitor economy operators the chance to come together to explore ways to tackle these financial challenges – without compromising on the high-quality customers service and visitor experience our world-class destination is renowned for.

“Cumbria Tourism’s regular member events are always very popular with businesses who value the chance to come together face-to-face to discuss key issues, build professional relationships and make the most of the practical advice and support on offer from both our in-house team and our extensive network of partners and industry experts.

To help support the wider industry, we are also opening up this event to non-member businesses for a small charge.”

Cumbria Tourism members can book their free place by visiting: www.cumbriatourism.org/events

Tourism businesses who are not yet members but would like to attend can also register for a place at a cost of £20. Contact Ben Melling at Cumbria Tourism for more information: 01539 822222 / bmelling@cumbriatourism.org.

As the county’s official Destination Management Organisation, Cumbria Tourism is at the heart of the Cumbrian Visitor Economy. It is also the largest membership organisation in Cumbria with 2,500 members. Last year more than 37 million people visited Cumbria, contributing £2.63 billion to the local economy, and supporting 31,843 full time jobs.

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