Tourists spend £185m
Feb 29 2008 by Dan Warburton, The Journal
AN INFLUX of overseas tourists is descending upon the North-East, boosting the region’s economy.
Figures from the government’s International Passenger Survey show that more international tourists than ever are coming to the region to stand below the Angel of the North, scale Hadrian’s Wall or just to feel the atmosphere inside St James’s Park.
Topping the list of nationalities flooding into the North East are the 100,000 Germans who made the trip in 2006.
They are followed by the 71,000 Norwegians and the 52,000 Irish Republicans who ventured into the region. But making their debut in the top 10 are the 23,000 Polish visitors coming to paddle in the North Sea or stroll along the banks of the Tyne.
Sian Benchley, a spokesman for VisitBritain, the UK’s tourism marketing organisation, said: “To see Poland in the top 10 is interesting because it is an emerging market.
“In particular, Eastern Europe is an emerging market for the North East of England.”
Latest figures show that overseas tourists spent a massive £185m in Tyne and Wear in 2006, the latest period for which figures are available – 46% more than the £127m spent in 2005.
And that is shown by the huge increase in the number of international visitors.
In 2005, only 378,000 overseas tourists visited Tyne and Wear, but in 2006 437,000 overseas tourists came to the area – an increase of 16%. The number of nights stayed by overseas tourists leapt to a combined total of almost 4.06 million, a 35% increase from the previous year’s 3.02 million.
And that trend is mirrored in Northumberland.
Figures show overseas tourists spent £19m in the county in 2006 – an increase of more than 35% over the £14m spent in 2005.
And the number of international visitors to the area rocketed by 32%, from 56,000 to 74,000.
The number of foreign tourists’ “overnights” also rose from a combined tally of 309,000 in 2005 to 344,000 in 2006 – an increase of 11%.
Tom Wright, chief executive of VisitBritain, said: “Despite ever increasing competition from ever more accessible overseas destinations, the Tyne and Wear and Northumberland tourism businesses can be rightly proud of this magnificent achievement.
“The key thing now is to build on that success. Tourism is tremendously important to the area’s economy, and local businesses need to do all they can to maintain and sharpen their competitive edge.”
And North East tourism agencies are encouraged by the economic impact these international tourists make on the region.
Andrew Dixon, executive director of Tourism Tyne and Wear, said: “This is really positive news.
“It’s confirmation of the contribution that Tyne and Wear tourism businesses have made towards enhancing our reputation as a leading destination which is growing in popularity not just amongst UK visitors, but also those from around the world. The economic impact these visitors make cannot be underestimated and we will continue in our efforts to encourage even more people to come here in the months and years ahead.”
