A NEW study has revealed a £21bn annual visitor spend across the North and highlighted the importance of good connectivity to capitalise on that spend.

The Visitor Economy and Transport in the North of England report shows that in 2019, the North accounted for 25 per cent of tourism spending in England – and that goes up to 37 per cent if London is not counted and the total visitor spend across the North in 2019 was estimated at £21.05 billion – with a total net GVA contribution from that of £12.33 billion.

That came from some 420 million visits in 2019, six million of which were by international visitors.

Big cities including Manchester, Leeds, Liverpool, Sheffield and Newcastle were top of the league for places to go, while Cumbria and North Yorkshire rank second and third in the UK for the share of economic output attributable to tourism – bettered only by Cornwall.

It also found the visitor economy provides jobs for 579,000 people and 39,000 businesses – accounting for eight per cent of total employment in the North – with many more jobs supported indirectly.

Commissioned by Transport for the North, it is the first comprehensive pan-Northern study of the visitor economy and its relationship with transport. 

Martin Tugwell, Chief Executive of Transport for the North, said: “This report paints a clear, and very exciting, picture of the value of our region’s visitor economy.

“This research has wider implications. The transport challenges those coming into our region face are the same for our residents and businesses too, particularly in rural areas, so the insights from this work will help build our cases for all manner of projects.

“As we look to build back better and greener, these findings are part of the evidence and insight needed to identify those solutions that will bring the biggest benefits and the most positive outcomes.

"We must ensure we get the committed investment needed to create a transport network with the speed, capacity and reliability to move these visitors, and our residents, around more effectively. Additional investment could be truly transformative for our economy, our businesses and our people.”

The report highlights potential challenges and barriers to using public transport for visitor journeys, including high cost of travel, confusing ticketing options and restricted levels of service at certain times of day. 

It adds that Northern Powerhouse Rail and HS2 could provide a “step change in connectivity” which will increase the attractiveness of the region of the region for domestic business and leisure visitors, while also providing better links to key international gateways such as Manchester Airport and those in other parts of England.