Have Your Say on Scarborough Borough Tourism Plans

A consultation on a revised plan to bring more visitors to the Yorkshire Coast ends this week.

The Scarborough Borough's Tourism economy needs more staying visitors and needs them to stay longer.

That's one of the aims of a proposed new tourism strategy for the Borough.

A public consultation on the strategy ends this week.

Tourism Manager at the borough council, Janet Deacon, says the tourism market has changed and the borough needs to develop new experiences to attract visitors.

Janet says there are a raft of measures that can be taken to provide an improved visitor experience and help secure local employment opportunities.

In the average year, more than 10 million visits are made to the borough, contributing more than £800 million to the local economy.

The visitor economy strategy and destination plan has been updated in light of the coronavirus pandemic, which had a devastating effect on this year’s holiday season.

While the borough did benefit from an influx of visitors at the end of the initial coronavirus lockdown, the economy took a considerable hit. However, experts believe an appetite for staycations in the wake of Covid-19 will benefit the borough next year.

The council says it is keen to hear the views of residents and businesses. The strategy can be read on the council website and the consultation questions answered online.

Work on the new plan started in August in consultation with visitor and hospitality businesses right across the borough, combined with responses to an earlier consultation.

The overall aim is to increase the value of tourism to the borough so that it has a positive impact on residents and businesses but doesn’t affect the environment or damage local communities.

The council says it is keen to build on existing traditional markets and at the same time look to attract additional aspirational, and affluent visitors, to the Yorkshire coast. 

One of the key objectives of the strategy is to encourage tourists to stay longer and explore more of what the borough has to offer. This would be achieved by promoting its hidden gems, coastal and countryside villages and its beauty spots.

Another outcome is to develop more ‘off-peak’ visits through increased promotion of what the borough has to offer outside of the traditional summer season. One idea is more festivals and events, which could take place all year round.

The strategy proposes that more support be given to tourism and hospitality businesses in the borough to assist them in maximising their marketing potential.

The new destination plan will cover the period from now until 2030, which will incorporate Scarborough’s 400th anniversary in 2026.

An early target is to return the local visitor economy to pre-2020 levels by the end of 2022 and then look to increase the value by four per cent year-on-year.

Cllr Liz Colling, Scarborough Borough Council Cabinet Member for Inclusive Growth, said:

“The importance of the visitor economy to our borough can’t be overstated.

“Many of our residents have jobs connected to the tourist industry, so it’s vital our plans for growing this part of the economy are as good as they can be.

“This new strategy – while ambitious for the borough – builds on the fantastic attractions and the stunning Yorkshire coast that we are already famed for.

“If we can capture more of the staycation market in future years it will be a shot in the arm for us.

“I encourage everyone to let us know what they think about our plans by taking part in this latest consultation.”