Shadow of foot and mouth set to lift at last (From Gazette & Herald)

Shadow of foot and mouth set to lift at last

HOPES are high that the vitally important local tourism industry will recover in full this year from the devastating impact of foot and mouth.

And there are significant reasons for their optimism.

Many Britons are expected to holiday at home because of the threatened Iraq war.

A new 'Purple Passport' is being introduced for visitiors.

And for the first time, tourist attractions in Ryedale and Scarborough are joining forces in a campaign to distribute thousands of leaflets and promotion guides to hoteliers and tourist information centres.

In the past, the two district authorities in the area have mounted separate leaflet exchange days, but there will be a joint gathering today at Eden Camp.

Mike Wilkinson, Scarborough's head of marketing, said: "This initiative is just one of several partnership schemes we are running with Ryedale District Council and the North York Moors National Park. It saves money and provides a much-improved service to holiday attractions."

He added: "Research shows that visitors travel extensively around this part of North Yorkshire because of the many attractions. The more information they have the better their holiday experience."

Steve Jaques, chairman of Ryedale Tourism Association and head of Eden Camp, said the new Ryedale holiday guide had been highly acclaimed by the association's 260 members. "There is much more confidence by those in the industry this year."

He added that Eden Camp - now one of the leading tourist attractions in Yorkshire - had seen its visitor numbers up already this year, compared with the same period in 2002.

The £1.5m provided by Yorkshire Forward, the regional development agency, to the Yorkshire Tourist Board to step up marketing in the county last year had paid dividends and, as a result, a similar sum was being given this year. "This can only be good news for Ryedale because people are now realising just how valuable the tourist industry is to the district."

Latest figures show that it is worth some £100m a year and employs 6,500 people directly, plus many others indirectly in related businesses which benefit from the tourist trade.

"Our association is the envy of many in the country because we have such a good working relationship with Ryedale council's tourism and economic development department," said Mr Jaques.

He added that the council's new tourism policy, which seeks to promote the economic benefits of the industry, had been well received by the many businesses in Ryedale.

With foreign holidays in decline as the public becomes increasingly nervous about the threatened Middle East war, more people could turn to areas such as Ryedale for their holiday this year, believes Mr Jaques.

His optimism was shared by Ryedale's tourism officer, Corina Inverno, who said that nearly half of the 60,000 holiday guides published two months ago, had already been distributed. "The signs are encouraging. We are hopeful that businesses will see a full return to the levels before the foot and mouth disease outbreak because many were hard hit."

Today also sees the launch of a new marketing campaign to promote the district as 'The Purple Patch'. It will bring together several businesses in the national park to promote their enterprises and the area.

The group, which includes the White Swan Hotel, Pickering, Wydale Hall, Brompton-by-Sawdon, the Mallyan Spout Hotel, Goathland, and the Raven Hall Hotel, Ravenscar, is launching a 'Purple Passport' at the Mallyan Spout with members of the television Heartbeat series, said John Gallery, spokesman for the group. The launch will also include an exhibition of food, drink and other products to be found in the park, he said.

Last weekend, tour operators from all parts of Britain visited Ryedale and the national park as part of a fact-finding exercise.

They visited Pickering Castle, Malton and the North York Moors National Park as well as Whitby Abbey, said Nicola Bexon, regional marketing manager for English Heritage which commissioned the group travel showcase along with Steve Reed Tourism Ltd. The Green Man Hotel, Malton, was among those which supported the initiative.

Several tourist attractions in Ryedale, including Flamingo Land and Castle Howard, were among those visited by the group of tour operators and planners who were taken around by transport provided by Fletchers Coaches of Malton.

"We know from past experience that events such as this can create a lot of interest among key decision-makers in the industry, helping to put an area on the tourism map."

Updated: 09:00 Wednesday, March 19, 2003