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UK hopes to cash in on Olympics to boost tourism
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19 May 2011 |
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Britain's tourism sector is hoping to cash in on next year's Olympic Games in London as a golden opportunity to showcase the city to the world.
Already riding high with the fairytale wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, the Olympic Games and the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of Queen Elizabeth II provide a perfect opportunity to grow the tourism market there from 30 million visitors last year to more than 34 million by 2014.
At the launch of an ambitious marketing campaign supported by a public-private partnership fund worth £100 million, Sandie Dawe, VisitBritain's chief executive, said the events make it a "really exciting time" for her organisation.
"There's a buzz about Britain right now," she said. "The Royal Wedding created that and we're hoping to build on that with the Olympics and the Queen's Diamond Jubilee coming up.
Marketing campaign
"It's a great time for a celebration and to celebrate what Britain is all about."
Indeed, broadcast figures for the late-April nuptials of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge brought worldwide television audiences of close to two billion, while the wedding broke all social networking records on the internet in terms of tweets.
The campaign is based on the slogan "You're invited" in an attempt to make every visitor feel personally and emotionally connected to Britain. To reinforce that, Visit Britain has turned to celebrities in sports, entertainment and Bollywood to drive home the brand.
Specifically, VisitBritain is targeting visitors from south-east Asia, China and the Gulf countries.
Karan Johar, the Bollywood director of Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, which broke box-office records all over the world, has lent his support to the marketing campaign by being a goodwill ambassador.
"I love London," he said. "I love Mayfair. In fact I think I know Mayfair better than I know Mumbai."
His fondest memories are of visiting Britain every year during the summer holidays and of shopping on Oxford Street. He says he still gets inspiration for movie scenes from shopping in Harrods, Harvey Nichols and Selfridges.
"I recommend it to any young filmmaker," he said. "What really impresses me too is the friendliness of its people and the beautiful old stately homes and wonderful scenery."
Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham was filmed in Blenheim Palace and other big scene settings and provided the perfect backdrop to bring together some of the biggest names in Bollywood in one movie. It obviously worked — the movie holds the distinction of being the highest-rated Indian movie in both Britain and the US. It debuted at No. 3 in the UK behind the mega-hits Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter.
"Come and join the party," Dawe said, noting that the upcoming events have placed Britain front and centre stage for the next 12 months. "In essence, the Royal Wedding was a dress rehearsal for 2012."
Her organisation helped cater to the world's media in providing exposure to the Royal Couple's life and how they met.
"In many ways, London is such a draw that only 10 per cent of visitors to Britain go to Scotland, and only 5 per cent visit Wales," she said, adding that both regions provided incredible natural beauty and a totally different perspective to any visit to Britain.
Of the 30 million that came to Britain last year, about 12 million were actually on holiday and the rest on business or visiting friends and relatives.
Full support
Adding his weight to the campaign to entice more visitors to sample everything from crown jewels to crumpets and clotted cream, Alex Hua Tien, the first Chinese Olympic Event rider, said that while he works and enjoys training in the verdant countryside, he likes nothing more than savouring the hustle and bustle of London.
"There is nothing more quintessentially British than equestrian sports. I represented my country in Beijing and now I will hopefully get to participate in London in what is essentially my home."
Ashia Gill, an accomplished television presenter and actor, has also been appointed a goodwill ambassador for VisitBritain although she currently resides in Malaysia.
Current government cutbacks in Britain have reduced the VisitBritain budget by 35 per cent over the next four years. Dawe, however, feels that the agency retained the full support of the coalition government at Westminster, with its commitment to making the immigration process at points of entry more welcoming and streamlining the visa process for visitors.
UAE visitors: Rank 11th on the list
Last year, 211,000 visitors from the UAE to Britain spent £310 million (Dh 1.842 billion) while visiting the nation's historic sights, dining in its restaurants and visiting its public houses, according to a market snapshot data.
The average UAE visitor spent £1,466 while in Britain, earning the emirates an 11th-placed ranking. And most UAE visitors to Britain spent on average 13.5 nights there. Most trips took place between July and September, a trend which reflects the large expatriate make-up.
Not surprisingly, about half of the visits were to see family and friends, VisitBritain statistics show.
And most travellers from the UAE consider Britain to be a second home, seeking shopping, entertainment and attractions for children there.
Traditional tourism activities were less popular for travellers from the UAE, with just 22 per cent going to on see historic monuments and only 14 per cent visited art galleries and museums.
Most of the UAE travellers came from Abu Dhabi, followed closely by Dubai, then Sharjah, Ras Al Khamaih, Fujairah, Ajman and Umm Al Quwain.
Britain remains the second most-popular destination for UAE travellers, ranked behind Saudi Arabia, but ahead of France, Austria, Oman and Italy.
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Source: beta.thehindu.com |
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