Visitors ahoy! Coast and countryside push as Cumbria Tourism eyes Easter market (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Visitors ahoy! Coast and countryside push as Cumbria Tourism eyes Easter market

3:48pm Tuesday 12th February 2013 in News By Ellis Butcher, Reporter

CUMBRIA Tourism is set to sing the praises of the county coastline and the Lake District countryside in a major marketing push in the countdown to Easter.

It aims to lure potential visitors to the area for breaks ahead of the crucial curtain raiser of the tourism season.

The campaign with partners VisitEngland, the national tourism authority, focusses on coastal experiences visitors can have, from exploring hidden coves and historic fishing villages, to fresh local produce and sunset walks along the beach.

The current campaign is the third of six campaigns running until March which covers four types of visitors; those interested in the countryside, the coast, heritage and culture.

It was funded in part by the Government’s regional growth fund.

It will see the area given a profile in national newspapers and radio station Classic FM as well as online and social media activity, including Facebook competitions.

Ian Stephens, managing director of Cumbria Tourism, said: ‘’Cumbria, as one of England’s attract brands, is one of the key destinations to benefit from this project co-ordinated by VisitEngland.

"The campaign key themes of coast, romantic escapes, active outdoors and culture will undoubtedly raise awareness of the Lake District, Cumbria, for the start of the season and well into the key Easter Holiday period.

“A series of stunning images, captivating videos and inspirational web and social media content, will depict our beautiful Cumbrian landscapes, our quality food offer, our huge range of adventure activities, outdoor family fun and our strong cultural offer to a huge variety of audiences around the country.”

The campaigns will encourage people to visit Cumbria Tourism’s www.golakes.co.uk website to find out more and book breaks.

James Berresford, VisitEngland’s chief executive, commented: “This exciting campaign is one of several launching this year with the aim of growing tourism in England. The campaign aims to inspire UK residents to ‘escape’ the hustle and bustle of everyday life, to take a short break in one of England’s most beautiful coastal destinations. This is a great example of the industry working in partnership to stimulate tourism and grow jobs throughout the country.”

The new marketing drive is part of VisitEngland’s three-year investment project called ‘Growing Tourism Locally’.

Visit England received £19.8million from the government’s regional growth fund to profile various parts of the country, with the aim of generating £365million in additional tourism spend over the 2012-15 period, as well as inspiring more residents to take more holidays and short breaks at home.