CUMBRIA needs more help from central and local government to market the region to international visitors, according to a group of the county’s leading tourism thinkers.

Speaking at the annual Cumbria Leisure and Tourism Roundtable, organised by accountancy and business advisory firm Moore and Smalley, sector bosses said that international marketing efforts were too focused on promoting London and the city regions.

Attendees at the event said the region needs more help at a national level in defining its international target markets and bringing a more regional flavour to inward tourism campaigns.

Ian Stephens, chief executive of Cumbria Tourism, said: “As a region, we’re inexperienced at international marketing. We don’t have the funding or resources to run our own overseas marketing campaigns.

"Seventy-five per cent of all overseas visitors go to London. There are clear benefits to the UK economy in promoting the big cities, but the trickle down to rural areas like Cumbria is slow. The government’s agents, VisitBritain and VisitEngland, need to educate tourists that there’s more on offer.”

Barney Cunliffe, owner of Gilpin Hotel and Lakehouse, near Bowness, said: “The Asian market has got the most potential for growth, for example London and Paris are heaving with Asian visitors. There is potential that visitors from China, Singapore and Hong Kong will come here in winter, boosting us through the quieter months. However, we can’t go for the international market as individual businesses, we need support at a higher level."

Other issues discussed included the need to invest in and upgrade tourism properties to increase business, the threat from rising supplier costs and red tape and what the next few years has in store.

There were mixed views on how the Lake District’s bid to become a Unesco World Heritage site might impact the visitor economy.

The government announced in 2014 that the Lake District will be put forward as the UK’s next nomination in 2016.

Naomi Fell, of Harrison Drury solicitors, said she believes World Heritage status could only be a “positive badge” for the region.

However, others believe it could stand in the way of tourism growth because of the hefty preservation responsibilities it brings.

The annual Cumbria Leisure and Tourism Roundtable, now in its fifth year, brings together regional tourism bodies, hotel and hospitality operators, and professional advisers to gauge the health of the sector and what the future holds for the industry.

Colin Johnson, head of the leisure and tourism team at Moore and Smalley, said: “This was another opportunity for some of the region’s leading leisure and tourism businesses to air their views with tourism bosses and contribute towards a healthy debate on the future of the sector with key decision makers."

Guests at the event were Ian Stephens, Cumbria Tourism; Barney Cunliffe, Gilpin Hotel and Lakehouse, Nick Lancaster, Langdale Estate; Danny Thompson, Oakbank House Hotel; Stewart McIntosh, The Villa at Levens; Haydn Spedding, Colliers International; Naomi Fell, Harrison Drury; Karina Gallagher, NatWest; Colin Johnson, Moore and Smalley.