b4mbi Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 I'm failing to understand why we are bothered that the tourism industry has declined? Is it some need to feel that we are somehow popular ? I guess that tourisms economic benefits are overstated.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost Login Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 I had forgotten that bit of magical planing but basically much of it all falls down to many of the few "tourist" attractions being run with the apparent primary concern being those that are employed there rather than potential visitors whether it be tourists or locals. Employees interests should not be ignored but I think the House of Mannanin, apart from a couple which are basically just cafes, is the only MNH site open 7 days a week all year round. I am not saying they all should be but at least the major ones should at least be open at weekends throughout the year especially if the intention is to attract the "heritage"/"countryside" tourists on a weekend break. The Manx Museum is also closed every Sunday. Now I appreciate we are a God fearing nation and spend all day at Church on Sunday but surely it would make sense to be open at the weekends when the majority have time off work and so could go if they wish and closed a weekday when the majority are stuck at work What is the point of all the heritage sites opening at Easter when schools are out the week before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost Login Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 OK it was a slight miss typing and I never said that everything is available within 30 minutes wherever you stay in Cornwall etc. The point was that just as in the IOM the beaches, countryside, heritage sites are all within 30 mins drive of each other that is also the case if you stay in the many parts of the UK. And the Irish Sea is approximately 40,000 square miles. So what?Wherever you go on holiday, you still want to have something to do when you get there - and if the facilities are good enough you don't mind paying the price. I was responding to the statement that everything is within 30 minutes in Cornwall etc - at that size, apart from the very tip of Cornwall etc, I doubt very much that it is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P.K. Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 Hiding behing the cost issue is is therefore in my opinion a red heading as many people are not getting as far as looking at the cost. Wrong. You like the look of a holiday destination. You look at the cost and The Steam Racket makes your eyes water. Last year we were headed for the IOM and went to North Devon instead. It was very very nice and comparable in all sorts of ways with the IOM apart from the weather, things to do, the food (we headed south to try Rick's at Padstow - brilliant!), the quality of the accommodation and the cost. Otherwise there was little to choose between them..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost Login Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 From my perspective it is two fold. Firstly tourism should be good for the economy. Secondly that as a resident of the IoM improved tourists facilities will improve my and my quality of life as those facilities would also be used by local residents. I'm failing to understand why we are bothered that the tourism industry has declined? Is it some need to feel that we are somehow popular ? I guess that tourisms economic benefits are overstated.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lost Login Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 Fair enough but I believe that many are rejecting the IoM prior to looking at the cost. Even you wrote you liked the look first which indicates you made a decision about coming to the IoM first prior to looking at the cost. I also doubt you are a fair representative of a "floating" holiday maker as presumably you choose to come to the IoM because you have links here. Otherwise you would not be posting on an IoM forum. So yes you were put off by the cost but probably when deciding initially on where to go you already had chosen the IoM due to those links, rather than looking at a choice of brochures etc and deciding that the IoM was the place to go. What I find interesting though is your comment that the IoM and North Devon were similar. This is my original point. In the IoM we are complacent and thing we are unique in what we have to offer. We are not. Therefore we have to be make a special effort to attract those families that wish to holiday in the UK to offset the costs of travel and at present we do not. We believe we are unique and that is sufficient to attract some tourists when plainly it is not the case. Hiding behing the cost issue is is therefore in my opinion a red heading as many people are not getting as far as looking at the cost. Wrong. You like the look of a holiday destination. You look at the cost and The Steam Racket makes your eyes water. Last year we were headed for the IOM and went to North Devon instead. It was very very nice and comparable in all sorts of ways with the IOM apart from the weather, things to do, the food (we headed south to try Rick's at Padstow - brilliant!), the quality of the accommodation and the cost. Otherwise there was little to choose between them..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manxman In Exile Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 That is the sort of complacency that I refer to. Many of us like the IoM and think it is a great place but it is not unique. In Cornwall, North Wales, Cumbria etc they are also all within half an hours drive of each other! But we have these beaches, dramatic coastlines and countryside all within a half-hour drive of each other.Perhaps the Island can be bettered individually, but as a package it is a very attractive tourism spot. Cost (and the weather) is the issue. And the Isle of Wight, Channel Islands, Barbados etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thebees Posted May 11, 2007 Share Posted May 11, 2007 Where is there for families to stay here? Where can you camp with children near to any life? where can you go be entertained (music, dancing, singing) have a drink and bring your children? The Fun Barn/Laser Quest, its great but its the only place I can think of that provides teentertainment. We have hundreds of glens, why not make one into a cycle riding path? like they have at centre parks, hire bikes to people, give people something different to do. Our trains are fab, great family holiday stuff, but do our tourist board mention them on the adverts? no, & tourists dont automatically know that there are great parks at some stations,great food places along the line, no mention of any of these things in the train info leaflets. Our tourist board sell the Isle Of Man to OAPs. the poor old age pensioners, no wonder theres no money in tourism, pensions dont go very far! Sceneic views alone do not attract families. We hate airports, children, queues and secuirty do not mix well, so we holiday in the UK, I'm sure there are many families in the UK/Scotland/Ireland that would love to avoid airports, if the Isle of Man wants to invest in tourism, then it needs to look to a new market and give it self a shake. ...the mooragh park, its ace, no mention of that in the scabby mag on the boat. The tourist board are rubbish! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keyboarder Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Tourists are all very well, but we don't want them foreign ones, lol... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amadeus Posted May 12, 2007 Author Share Posted May 12, 2007 Tourists are all very well, but we don't want them foreign ones, lol... Still working to become "Troll of the year" then, yes?.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu Peters Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 I don't know that we could ever have much of a general tourism industry these days, outside of niche markets (which we seem quite good at...motorsports, walking etc). There isn't a 'big draw' attraction, travel costs will always make the IOM expensive to get to (even at half the current prices, which would be uneconomical for the operators). We need some reason to - say - attract the lucrative wedding trade (an Elvis chapel at the top of Snaefell??). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VinnieK Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Before prices and attractions (or lack of) are taken into account, there's also the problem of getting people to think of the Isle of Man when they are thinking about their holidays. The Lake District, Cotswalds and Cornwall are all well established as potential holiday destinations in the minds of the general populace, this cannot be said for the Isle of Man and its tourist trade suffers because of this. From what I've experienced, most people view the Island (when they think about it at all) as little more than a non-descript entity in the middle of the Irish Sea - a place where people live, not where they go for their holidays. The problem then, in addition to the price of visiting and the lack of attractions/facilities, is promoting the Island in such a way that's going to appeal to people. That's where things get difficult because it's hard to identify precisely what sets us apart from other, similar tourist destinations - Ireland and Scotland have the whole glen and untamed countryside thing going for them, and they have the advantage in terms of celtic romance, whilst cornwall has plenty of picturesque rural communities and beaches (and better weather). This is made all the more difficult by the fact that similar holiday destinations are usually in the proximity of at least one decently sized city or town that can offer plenty of restaurants, cafés, shops, and cultural activities for people to add variety to their trip. After a couple of fun packed days spent trampling bracken, walking around castle rushen/peel castle, and hearing waxwork vikings talking about fish, or something, Douglas (or any other town) is a bit of an anti-climax. For all their merits, the Island's towns simply don't compete when it comes to tourism - architecturally and in terms of atmosphere they're underwhealming, the cafés and restaurants are, with at best a couple of exceptions, a bit humdrum, and the shopping is limited to say the least. Also, whilst The Manx Museum is very good at capturing the history of the Isle of Man, the Island's never really been important enough for that history to be that interesting beyond its own borders. The Island is a niche destination, and is probably going to remain that way forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frances Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 The proposed cruise ship berth may well be a major draw - if you visit Lerwick (Shetland) or Kirkwall (Orkney) there are many such visits (typ 2 or 3 a week in season) - few stay more more than a day or so but each ship deposits more than 20 coach loads of relatively free spending (rich ?) Americans on the quayside who are then bussed around various tourist sites - they need guides, lunchtime refreshments etc + the souvenir trade - The Island could well be the southernmost call of these cruise ships which are no more than floating 2000 bed+ hotels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
copycat Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 driving along Douglas promenade this afternoon there was a van double parked so I had to drive into the horse tram tracks and through a load of horse ****. How are they allowed to use these animals going up and down the promenade - surely its a health and saftey issue and against public hygene - if they must have them then why doesn't the driver have to stop and the guard clean up the mess before proceeding. If they can't do that then they should stop them - the time is over for that sort of transport and as for the cost to Douglas ratepayers....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Declan Posted May 12, 2007 Share Posted May 12, 2007 Copycat you nutter - instead of bleating on here about it. You should have nipped out and scooped the deposit up for your roses! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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