Group Travel Partnership

Partners 5 Hotels 4 Blue Badge Guides 6 Food, Drink & Shopping 24 Attractions Great geographical spread Wide variety of activities

Budget £8,265 generated from businesses £1,200 contribution from Northumberland Tourism Total budget at this point of £9,465

Highlights of Coach Monthly press trip resulting in 2 multiple page features Attended March Marketplace & VisitEngland Travel Trade Masterclass Website presence expanded featuring 3 itineraries, town guides, group leaflets, coach parking and accommodation – 125.7% increase on 2014 Northumberland listing on VisitBritain trade directory Attended VIBE First group travel newsletters sent out NTGF activity including Chinese fam trip, Gardens & Stately Homes event, Agent North training and Australian fam trip GTOA Showcase & fam trips in the North East Advert in Finest Historic Houses, Castles & Gardens publication Travel GBI feature in March edition 3 Explore GB fam trips, USA, Canada and France & Belgium

Proposed Activity (as per last meeting) Attendance at a minimum of 2 trade shows per year; British Tourism & Travel Show and Group Leisure & Travel Show (historically, open to discussion) Northumberland Group Travel Brochure produced to be given out at shows, used promotionally and available online. Destination membership to Associations (ETOA, UKInbound, GTOA are possibilities, tbc) Regular e-newsletters to the contact database Expansion of the group travel section of visitnorthumberland.com including group-specific listings. Possibility of once a year organized familiarization event Possible commission of a new stand for trade shows

Exhibition Shows British Tourism & Travel Show (formerly BoBI) -2 days in Birmingham in March Group Leisure & Travel Show - 1 day in Birmingham in October Launch the brochure & website, add to newsletter database, continue to raise the profile of Northumberland as a group destination. 1 DMO place, 1 key sponsor place and 1 BBG place available at each show. BBG & DMO to have briefing from Partners before shows.

Show Sponsorship Opportunities Key Sponsor – 1 attendee place per show, option to bring 1 standard width pop-up banner to sit alongside branded main stand banner. Make direct contacts with buyers and organisers. £500+VAT per show Stand Sponsor – main feature image on show stand banner. £150+VAT per year (used at both shows)

Brochure 36 page A5 full colour brochure Independent Spirit branding to keep in line with our other publications Using the group travel website colour scheme overall for continuity Sponsorship of cover and back cover ad sold to English Heritage Attractions, Accommodation, Guides and Food, Drink & Shopping sections with partner adverts Editorial includes (still open to suggestions though space is limited); closer than you think, itineraries, towns, unique experiences, events (Hadrian’s Cavalry focus), coach parking, map with reference dots.

Brochure Adverts Less text (85 words) and larger image More text with bullet points (110 words) and smaller image

Newsletters Proposed themes: Winter getaways/Christmas Bespoke to launch brochure Launch of GTP website & itineraries What’s new Hadrian’s Wall Castles Northumberland Coast Rest & Refreshment Stops History & Heritage Hidden Gems Gardens Open to suggestions… Current number of subscribers: 656

Website 3 main pages – landing page, towns & travel and itineraries Group travel listings are live – some still to be completed Once all listings are completed the itineraries can go live, will link to listings Once website content is ready newsletters can start going out linking to them

Remaining Budget After production of the brochure, commission of a stand banner and costs of attending the shows we have the following budget remaining: £3,100 (assuming both key sponsor and stand sponsor opportunities are sold - £1,950 if not) £200 – to support a North East presence at ITB Berlin German trade show 2017 (as per 2016) £150 – to post out brochures to those contacts we want to specifically target Leaving £2,750 (£1,600) to spend.

Remaining Budget Suggestions Feedback from survey & meetings suggests the following options: -Advertising in relevant publications/e-newsletters Trade publications such as Group Leisure, Coach Monthly, Discover Britain for Groups, Coach Tours UK. Many offer editorial if you purchase an advert. Good opportunity to include coverage for a variety of partners in each ad. -Organising a familiarisation visit Various options are available. Working with Group Leisure Readers Club would cost £3k simply to promote the event, with the costs of hosting on top of that. We could run our own and invite contacts that we hand-pick, but there will still be hosting costs to consider, as well as in-kind contributions needed from partners. -VIBE/Explore GB VisitBritain events. VIBE to meet VB international staff from around the world and brief them on our product. Explore GB for ‘speed dates’ with tour operators/organisers. VIBE £600 approx. cost. Explore GB £900 for 1 attendee. -Membership to national or international Trade Associations; ETOA, UK Inbound, GTOA, CTC Costs range from £300 to £1,600 per association and would give us visibility on recognised association websites & in their publications. It is worth keeping some budget flexible so we can respond to any unexpected opportunities.

Next Steps Create a new action plan for & circulate to Partners Do it! Partners – complete website listings, provide advert/newsletter info promptly when requested as will have short turnarounds.