Tatton Park boosts Cheshire tourism’s new high

Visitor numbers in Cheshire have hit a record high with numbers exceeding 45m – an increase of 10m people over 2009 – and a 6.4% on 2013.

The numbers were announced by Marketing Cheshire at its Annual Visitor Economy Conference at Crewe Lyceum to an audience of the county’s key tourism partners.

With 31m visiting Cheshire West and Chester and just under 15m visiting Cheshire East, more visitors are heading to the county to enjoy the unique experiences on offer than ever before.

Visitor spend is also up with tourism expenditure across Cheshire increasing by 9.5% to £2.5bn in 2014, with £1.6bn spent in Cheshire West and Chester and £806m in Cheshire East. Tourism spend in Cheshire has grown significantly from £1.6bn in 2009 to £2.5bn in 2014, a 51% increase.

An increase in hotel rooms in the area, shorter travel time from London to Chester by train as well as a free Cathedral with its brand new attraction “Cathedral at Height”, the enhanced City Walls experience, and continuous improvement at Cheshire Oaks are among the many reasons Chester is seeing an increase in visitor numbers and spend, says Marketing Cheshire.

For Cheshire East Tatton Park’s Visit England’s “Large Visitor Attraction of the Year” award for 2014 and Dunham Massey’s transformation into a World War One military hospital has had a significant impact on numbers along with a higher attendance at artisan markets such as Macclesfield’s Treacle Market , a calendar of stand-out events and key investment in nearby hotels.

In 2014, accommodation spend in Cheshire East showed the greatest jump, with 15.8% more being spent by tourists in the area. Hotel occupancy across Cheshire has continued to increase into this year with 73.4% in April 2015, an increase on the same month last year. Average Daily Rate (ADR) and Revenue per Available Room have also shown prominent increases on last year, which encourages optimism for accommodation spend and overnight visits to Cheshire for 2015.

With several projects set to open this year including the £40m Islands project at Chester Zoo, the development of the inspiring RENEW Chester Cultural Centre as well as the proposed new visitor centre at Jodrell Bank, figures are expected to continue to increase at a similar rate in the next few years.

Katrina Michel, chief executive of Marketing Cheshire, said: “We don’t stand still in Cheshire and these record figures are testament to the hard work and commitment shown by our hotels, restaurants and attractions. Cheshire’s star continues to rise whether it’s through prime time television coverage with shows such as Homefires, Ordinary Lies and Our Zoo or stand-out experiences such as Bolesworth International, Cholmondeley Pageant of Power and this summer’s Rise Above Sportive with Mark Cavendish with visitors flocking here to stay longer and spend more money. And 2016 is looking even more exciting with the final activities in the Northern Tourism Growth Fund, the Year of the Garden, the second International Festival of Business in Liverpool and the delivery of a fabulous new cultural centre that will all have a major impact on the night time economy in Chester.”