Issue - meetings

The Committee received a presentation from Emma Thornton regarding Visit Cambridge and Beyond.

 

The presentation covered the following issues:

·        Updated on current tourism trends.

·        Outlined plans to work with stakeholders in future.

·        Updated on the plans to develop a clear strategy to manage tourism sustainably  for  the future.

·        Outlined the steps needed to develop a Destination Management Plan (DMP).

 

The Chief Executive of Visit Cambridge and Beyond (VCB) , responded to questions as follows:

 

1.   Councillor Nethsingha

The public found the timing of visitors frustrating. Most tour groups tended to visit at the same time of day causing congestion. Early morning and late afternoon / early evening were often quiet. Were other nearby local attractions on board with spreading visitor number more widely?

 

Newmarket had its own Destination Management Organisation (DMO) but was keen to work with  Visit Cambridge Ely also worked closely with  visit Cambridge East Cambs  has recently  developed  it’s own strategy.

 

2.   Councillor Bick

There appeared to be a lack of clarity around what is wanted and what the vehicle would be that was funded to deliver that.

 

VCB cannot deliver a strategic tourism function unless it is paid by city stakeholders to do so.  Visit Cambridge has developed a proposal for VCB to develop, maintain and support the delivery of a DMP for Cambridge. This would not be VCB’s plan but a plan shared, owned and delivered by the city collectively. VCB’s role would be to lead on its development and to co-ordinate its delivery.  The proposal requires a 4 year funding commitment from Cambridge City Council, South Cambs District Council, Cambridge University and Cambridge BID. Confirmation of this funding would be received by mid-September and is looking promising. The initial phase was expected to take around 6 to 9 months and will be focussed on  developing a better understanding of who are current visitors are and their needs and why the majority are not staying longer than a day. From this, a plan would be developed with local partners who would include evidence based interventions to encourage higher value visitors. The aim would be to manage visitors better and to better showcase what the Cambridge area has to offer to increase dwell time.

 

3.   Councillor Bick

Was a tourist tax a possibility?

 

Not currently but possibly in the future. Ideally this would be a national policy so that Cambridge is not isolated and perceived as unwelcoming.

 

4.   Councillor Matthews

What could be done to improve the evening tourist offer?

 

This is a difficult area, bridging the gap between the day time and evening economy. Cambridge BID had run some events such as the Outdoor Cinema, but feedback has been that these had not benefited local traders.

 

5.   Councillor Cantrill

How could Cambridge break into the Chinese tourist trade. The typical Chinese package tour visited Cambridge for just a few hours and added little to the local economy.

 

Work was on-going to develop this market better through working closely with the Cambridge China Centre. Affect and Chinese tour operators.

 

6.   Councillor Harrison

Could the University be encouraged to offer a purpose build visitor centre?

 

The University are a key partner with the DMP project and recognised that the current visitor offer was fragmented. Most visitors, and many locals, were not aware of the wide range of museums available for visitors.

 

Councillors thanked Emma for her interesting presentation.