The English National Park Experience Collection

Tourism providers in and around the Peak District National Park are being invited to apply to be a part of The English National Park Experience Collection – a collection of unique experiences which tell the story of our National Parks and the people who look after them, to international audiences.

The application process for experience businesses and accommodation providers is now open across nine of England’s National Parks. The programme will develop new experiences which have greater appeal to international audiences and which can be packaged together for development by and in close association with the inbound travel trade.

The initial application process is open until 18th May 2018.

Peak District National Park worked with other English National Parks to secure support from Visit England’s ‘Discover England Fund’.  The £1.2m project aims to develop new products and experiences to attract more overseas visitors to explore our National Parks. Whilst initially the project will be targeting German and Australian visitors, the new products created would be available to all markets.

The programme is looking for lead experience providers to apply through the application process. They can collaborate with other businesses to cover all aspects of the experience.  Separately, the programme is seeking accommodation providers to apply to support the experience collection.

Businesses looking to lead an experience can view frameworks and ideas before completing the online application form. The programme team welcomes tourism providers to add other experiences when completing the form, if they feel it would fit the collection. The research gathered shows that immersive experiences are what the target markets are looking for (outdoor enthusiasts 35-55 years and mature experience seekers (50-65 years).

Mark Holroyd, Head of Discover England National Parks Programme said: “There are opportunities for tourism businesses to apply from activity companies and attractions to accommodation providers. A core part of the programme will help businesses to tell the compelling stories of our National Parks to new audiences.”

With such a vast array of benefits, there is a small sign-up fee, which will be required at the beginning of the programme for successful businesses. This is based on the number of employees or how many rooms accommodation provider has.

For more information about the programme and to apply, visit www.nationalparks.gov.uk/experiencecollection