Visit West represents region as travel trade season begins

September heralds the start of the new travel trade season – a vital time for the team at Visit West.  This includes a programme of events, activities, meetings, and discussions with agencies both in the UK and overseas to continue to raise the profile of Bristol, Bath, and the West of England.

Image - Visit Britain's Paul Gauger gives an opening address at DBNA 2023

While decision making times for consumer leisure travel have shortened, as have some business events such as conferences, this work by Visit West ensures that the mechanisms are in place to enable consumer demand to be realised. For group travel, this includes making sure that the right hotels are connected to the right partners. Sometimes, this role is taken by a central office but often having insights from those within the destinations is essential. It is also not just about major brands and larger hotels – the quirky, boutique and homely B&Bs and guest houses are as vital as capacity.

It is also not just about having somewhere to stay. Connecting cultural, heritage and family attractions and experiences to this network ensures that there is a pipeline of visitors as well as being ‘seen’ in itineraries both in print and online.

Our aim is to make the region the hub base for visits to the UK, meaning that trips to other parts of the wider region, Wales and even London are easy to make, either through rail or coach travel, ensuring visitors stay longer. By basing visitors in one place overnight, there are significant economic benefits to the region both in food and drink and retail, as visits return for the late afternoon and early evening, creating time for shopping, an afternoon tea, or a meal out.  

It is also not just groups, but independent travel (FIT) and online agencies (OTA) that provide opportunities to reach new customers and these are both incredibly important to the success of the region.

This autumn and winter, the Visit West team will be representing the region at some of the key events in the travel calendar, including Visit Britain’s Destination Britain North America, UKInbound’s Annual Convention, Conference and Hospitality Show and the Group Leisure & Travel Show, before being part of some of the world's most important events, World Travel Market in London and IBTM in Barcelona.  These events represent hundreds of key meetings on behalf of the region and its businesses. Inbound international tourism is a key export in the region, with the 2022 International Passenger Survey (IPS) showing Bristol as the 7th most visited destination by overseas visitors and Bath 12th.  

In addition, the team will continue to welcome travel media and influencers from across the world, further raising the awareness and profile of the West of England, inspiring future leisure travellers and business events.