England’s Northwest at World Travel Market

Opening today (9th November) the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA) and its sub-regional tourism partners will be representing England’s Northwest at World Travel Market in London’s ExCeL.

Staged annually in the capital, the four-day travel trade show provides a unique opportunity for nearly 50,000 global travel trade professionals to meet and do business, all under one roof.

The NWDA will be coordinating the presence of Visit Chester and Cheshire, Cumbria Tourism, the Lancashire and Blackpool Tourist Board, Marketing Manchester and the Mersey Partnership to put England’s Northwest on a global platform.

The best of the region’s tourism businesses will be highlighted including regional and national tourism award winners. Among those on the stand will be Augill Castle (Enjoy England Bed and Breakfast of Year 2009), The Lowry Hotel (England’s Northwest Large Hotel of the Year 2009) and Imperial War Museum North (England’s Northwest Large Visitor Attraction of the Year 2009).

Other partners joining the region’s key destinations include Liverpool Football Club, Tate Liverpool, England’s Golf Coast, Abode Chester, Clitheroe Castle, Mountain Goat Tours and Windermere Lake Cruises.

The stand will also feature a three-foot high penguin from Liverpool, designed especially to highlight Go Penguins, a public art extravaganza which will see 100 of the flightless birds perched around the city from 22nd November and into the new year.

England’s Northwest will take its place alongside national tourism bodies including VisitBritain and VisitEngland as well as international destinations from Argentina to Zanzibar. The stand presence will ensure that the region maintains its status as a market leader in the UK tourism industry.

Nick Brooks-Sykes, Director of Tourism at the NWDA, said:

“Tourism is a hugely important industry in the Northwest, worth over £14 billion annually, and our presence at World Travel Market is testament to how seriously we take it. The event is an excellent opportunity to showcase the fantastic tourism product that we have here in the Northwest and, in the current economic climate, to generate new business for the region. Our presence is vital to help us maintain a competitive advantage over other UK regions and destinations worldwide.”