New figures from VisitBritain upgrade their previous forecast and there are now expected to be 37.5 million tourism visits to the UK this year. Spending by visitors is predicted to be over £30 billion – up 9 per cent on 2019. This is positive news after the huge hit the pandemic had on the sector. Helping businesses to continue to bounce back is certainly important in North West Norfolk where tourism is a vital part of our local economy worth around £500 million and tourism-related jobs account for around a fifth of jobs.
It is little surprise people choose Norfolk as their holiday destination when there is so much on offer. From outstanding coastline, countryside, and nature, the huge variety of leisure and visitor attractions, high quality food and drink, pretty villages, through to the wonderful heritage of Lynn there’s so much to experience. We’ve already enjoyed Festival Too and there are plenty of events to come including the Hunstanton tennis tournament, the upcoming North Norfolk Music Festival in South Creake, villages fetes, and more.
Of course, tourism brings pressures for local communities whether traffic, the impact of second homes or Airbnbs on the sustainability of villages, as well increased demands on the police, RNLI, and others in the summer. It is important therefore needs of local people are met while supporting great local businesses. That includes focusing on skills, sustainable tourism, accessibility, housing needs, and opportunities to extend the season, such as the observatory in Hunstanton promoting our dark skies.
Having grown up a few miles from our spectacular Norfolk coast I want everyone to enjoy it. So it is worrying the Environment Agency recently issued warnings for bathing waters in Hunstanton and other places. One potential issue is bird droppings from the roof of the Oasis centre being washed out to sea due and I’ve raised this with the borough council to see what could be done to mitigate it. Other possible causes are those I’ve written about before such as wastewater being discharging into storm drains rather than the sewerage system. With local MPs, I’ve called on Environment Agency and others to work together to rapidly take appropriate action.
Many visitors to Lynn arrive by train and the Town Board’s “Rail to River” project aims to make it more attractive when people arrive. While unnecessary industrial action is continuing to causing disruption for passengers, proposals have also been published to close the ticket office and move staff onto the station concourse. Data provided to me shows Lynn’s office accounted for 37.4% of recorded sales from the station – compared to an average of 12 per cent nationally.
For many people buying a ticket online or at a machine offers convenience but I’ve raised concerns with GTR about the impact the plans could have on elderly and disabled passengers who prefer to use the ticket office. The consultation has been extended until 1 September and GTR should listen to passengers and not proceed with plans they oppose. Have your say www.greatnorthernrail.com/publicconsultation
This column first appeared in the Lynn News on 11 August 2023.
