海角视频

Tourism can have a range of positive and negative impacts on a city and its surrounding region. But what if there was a way to grow tourism in a way that truly benefited all stakeholders, creating not only jobs and opportunities, but also contributing to cultural enrichment and sustainability goals?

海角视频, in partnership with and , recently held a design sprint around sustainable tourism, inviting key players into its Bath office. The sprint considered how tourism can serve as a catalyst for conserving and enhancing heritage, natural assets, targeted climate action and social cohesion.

As Robert Campbell, Head of Culture and Heritage, Bath & North East Somerset Council said; 鈥淏ath is only a successful city when we are a successful tourist destination, and everyone who lives and works and wants to live and work in the city has got a stake in that.鈥�

The design sprint outputs produced visions and roadmaps for sustainable tourism, with six key themes emerging. Ideas emerged naturally as a result of discussions between experts in the fields of tourism and sustainability, transcending disciplinary boundaries, something integral to any future sustainable tourism strategy.

1. Sustainable tourism success relies on interdependencies

Tourism analyses and strategies do not fit neatly within discipline or departmental boundaries. For example, B&NES鈥� potential reputation as an authentic destination known for health and wellbeing requires the alignment of various specialisms. Transport and infrastructure are required to make the broader region more accessible in a sustainable manner.

Governance is required to align transport masterplans with the needs of different stakeholders and ensure value for money. Nature and sustainability need to be embedded with in all projects in order to ensure that the donut economic model is realised. Lastly, the cooperation of local businesses is crucial to ensuring that the visitor economy emerges as more resilient, productive and sustainable as the result of any tourism strategy.

2. More comprehensive data is needed for strategic success

Across all six strategic areas, gathering a comprehensive evidence base was one of the first steps of each table鈥檚 strategic recommendations. Targeted data collection on key metrics and indicators is required to properly understand the predominant visitor profiles, their average spend or stay and the exact seasonality or economic contributions of tourism locally.

An understanding of the current state of tourism is a prerequisite to developing a tourism strategy. This is where priority areas, opportunities and risks will be identified. Data is also crucial to any monitoring framework that will evaluate the success of tourism strategies. Data gathering, analysis and monitoring will be integral to any future tourism strategy.

3. Bath has untapped potential as a health and wellbeing destination

Across all tables there was an understanding that B&NES has an untapped potential to promote itself as a health and wellbeing destination. Such an approach would cover different activities, attractions and assets. For over 2000 years Bath has welcomed visitors who have come for its thermal springs and the wellbeing offering associated with this. Bath鈥檚 spas and thermal springs are synonymous with its reputation as a city of rich heritage.

There was a feeling that both Bath and the wider region can benefit by leveraging this reputation. There is the opportunity for B&NES to build on its spa offerings by repositioning itself as a leading health and wellbeing destination. The surrounding landscape and bodies of water can draw in those seeking to engage with the natural environment. Slow food, heritage and leisure pursuits can complement this further.

4. We must offer unique and authentic experiences

Alongside the opportunities of establishing a health and wellbeing destination, the importance of authenticity was recognised by all groups. An authentic visitor destination offers experiences and products that are unique to the area. In B&NES, this includes Bath’s 2000-year history as a spa town and the West of England’s food and drink products with protected status.

By curating and marketing these unique offerings, B&NES can attract visitors who stay longer and spend more. Expanding tourism beyond Bath city centre to include the surrounding rural areas can help reduce seasonality and distribute visitor numbers more evenly, benefiting a wider range of local businesses and enhancing economic resilience. Emphasising authenticity can also improve residents’ perceptions of tourism, showcasing it as a sector that highlights the region’s special qualities and fosters local pride.

5. The visitor economy is undervalued

A view shared by many participants was that the visitor economy can be thought of as the forgotten economic sector. Compared to other sectors, it is not perceived as highly productive, skilled or prestigious. Employment in the sector is not considered an attractive route for Bath and Bristol鈥檚 large student populations. Similarly, policy and strategy tends to focus on other sectors at the expense of the foundational economy.

The reality is, however, that the tourism sector is a considerably employer and contributor to economic output. As such, what is needed is a shift in perceptions. The visitor economy needs to be prized for the contribution it makes, and thoughtful effort must be made to ensure its resilience. Effective strategies can help to enhance the contribution of this valuable sector, mitigating against high seasonality and productivity. This first requires us to appreciate the sector鈥檚 current role and its exciting potential.

6. Better communication is needed

Communication is key to shifting perceptions about tourism and helps to align strategies and objectives between businesses and government. Residents may not be aware of the benefits tourism has for them. Improving local understanding of the role of tourism, the businesses and employment it supports and the revenues it generates can help to garner support for developing the visitor economy further.

Visitor communication is key. A destination鈥檚 popularity and visitor numbers is influenced by its reputation. If B&NES is perceived as a destination that has more than one day鈥檚 worth of activities, then visitors will stay for longer. This requires a comprehensive visitor-focused marketing product directed at those visiting B&NES. A constructive yet alarming realisation from the day鈥檚 proceeding was that many of the recommendations were already being pursued by different stakeholders. From marketing to sustainability, there are exciting measures in place that crucial stakeholders weren鈥檛 aware of. This highlights that there is a clear need to communicate more effectively the actions that are already being taken in B&NES.

Moving from conversations to action

What next? The practical and concrete steps identified by stakeholders at this design sprint are the first step towards a combined strategic sustainable tourism plan for Bath and its surrounds. Kathryn Davies, Managing Director, Visit West sums it up; 鈥淭here’s a real opportunity here for Bath, and it’s how we then take this forward, develop and really showcase Bath on that national, international stage around it’s sustainable and regenerative tourism.