Billion pound festival fans flock to Yorkshire
As one of the most important fortnights in Yorkshire's summer calendar begins research reveals that festival goers contribute half a billion pounds to the local economy.
The Regional Visitor Survey 2009/2010 shows that festivals account for 10% of total visits to Yorkshire and are worth £500m to the county. It also shows that nearly a third of visitors (29%) travel to events or festivals from outside Yorkshire.
The news comes as Yorkshire prepares itself for an invasion of thousands of fans over the next 14 days to some of the county's key festivals - including Leeds Festival, the Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival, Scarborough Cricket Festival, Limetree and Whitby Folk Festival.
Gary Verity, chief executive of Welcome to Yorkshire said: "Festivals are big business for Yorkshire. Over 1,000 events and festivals will take place in Yorkshire this year contributing millions to the county's economy and attracting enthusiasts and day-trippers from all over the world.
"Their impact on Yorkshire's economy should not be underestimated. For example, over the next fortnight Yorkshire will be the hottest ticket in town as our festival programme includes some of the must attend events anywhere in Europe."
The Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival and the 125th Scarborough Cricket Festival alone are expected to attract over 100,000 people between them.
Welcome to Yorkshire launched a dedicated Festival section on Yorkshire.com (www.yorkshire.com/festivals) in May and since then it has been one of the most popular areas of the website averaging 8,000 hits a week and 96,000 hits since May.
Visitors can search by five areas - music, theatre art and literature, sport, food drink and country shows and uniquely Yorkshire festivals.
Festivals starting in the next fortnight include the Leeds West Indian Carnival, Whitby Folk Week, Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival, Leeds Festival, Limetree, Galtres, the 125th Scarborough Cricket Festival, Wensleydale Show and Dentdale Show.
Editors' Notes:
- Welcome to Yorkshire is the official destination management organisation for Yorkshire, working to grow the county's visitor economy.
- Welcome to Yorkshire is funded by Yorkshire Forward, the Regional Development Agency charged with improving the Yorkshire and Humber economy, and Welcome to Yorkshire members.
- Key facts include:
- Tourism in Yorkshire is worth £7 billion annually
- The county's industry employs almost a quarter of a million people
- There are 216 million visits to Yorkshire each year
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For further information contact:
Andy Denton - Press Officer
Email: adenton@yorkshire.com
Direct Line: 0113 322 3537
Mobile: 0785 5812094
Jo Francisco - Press Officer
Email: jfrancisco@yorkshire.com
Direct Line: 0113 322 3563
Mobile: 07769257327