Inovative Ways To Improve Tourism On Mann?

[triple7]

Lots of great ideas and hope that the Dept of Tourism is looking in. Big worry is that lots of towns in the NW are just as concerned about the lack of tourists and are struggling. They have day trippers as a boat / plane is not required.

 

We need key events but the steady erosion of empty Hotel accommodation into luxury flats means that where to stay in affordable accommodation for a short break is as big a financial challenge as getting here.

 

Some how we need 6-8 coaches of tourists per day every day!

[Max Power]

Build a proper motorsport venue, for visitors and locals alike and attract everything from track days, car and bike launches, British and World Superbikes, MotoGp, BTCC, all forms of racing in fact. It would help to grow the infrastructure needed to support it and provide jobs and entertainment to local people as well as attract visitors. The transport infrastructure would be more viable and profitable leading to a better deal all round for everyone!

 

It would put the Island in the front rooms of every country in the world and promote us as a high tech and go ahead community. A good place to visit and do business. (I'm sure all these emerging countries who have jumped on the race circuit bandwagon recently know a thing or two. There are only three circuits in the British Isles capable of holding international events and they are not the best as far as facilities go!

 

It could compliment the TT and MGP etc and maybe events could be run in conjunction, reducing road closing times and pressure on the organisers.

 

We seem to have blown a lot more money on crazier schemes than this lately. (Approx cost, 60m) And something that generates an income both directly and indirectly would be a great investment of our money

 

And no, not Jurby!

 

So why would people come here and not go to http://www.silverstone.co.uk without having to be put up in a hotel, get a ferry/plane then maybe hire a car, and on and on - If not jurby then where? What crazier schemes have we blown more than £60million on? How do you approximate this cost? Not every one on the Island likes motorsport. What if it's built and fails? Silverstone had a 3 day crowd of 207,000 people in 2007, great - where are you going to put them?

 

The same people going through the gate for three days? Anyway the majority of people camp at the circuit, the idea here is to improve the infrastructure surrounding the event to bring better transport, hotels and other entertainment to the Island. Everything suddenly becomes more viable and this would be the driving element.

There would be no need to build a full international spec. venue straight away in any case, just something which can be easily upgraded to accommodate.

Surely the anti TT brigade can't object to this one?

Why am I spending money going to continental races when I could go to Silverstone or Donnington? Why do people travel to Ireland to watch a BSB race? Because motor sport fans will travel the world to see the best in action, just talk to all the manxies who regularly attend continental MotoGp, F1 or World Superbike events! The fact that the major event could be tied into the TT will bring an added boost. Track time just for club meetings, testing and track days is at a premium, not to mention the associated events that could be run.

 

As for crazy schemes, how about a hospital and power station that cost well in excess of their projected cost for starters?

 

Oh, and people may stop confusing us with the Isle of Wight and stop associating us with birching, Methodism and the Fast Show stereotypical Manxies.

[slinkydevil]

As for crazy schemes, how about a hospital and power station that cost well in excess of their projected cost for starters?

 

They are not Tourism schemes, excessive cost maybe - but not crazy schemes, we need a hospital and a power station.

[Max Power]

As for crazy schemes, how about a hospital and power station that cost well in excess of their projected cost for starters?

 

They are not Tourism schemes, excessive cost maybe - but not crazy schemes, we need a hospital and a power station.

 

I agree, but I think the money was squandered. We do need another viable industry though!

 

We seem to have been searching for an alternative to the finance sector, in case the rug is pulled, for some years now. This may help shore up the defences a little.

[hannahsmummy1]

the department of tourism just dont seem to give a stuff about the island- which is a great shame. I was brought up on the island, and recently had the chance to move back, we declined because of the lack of things to do on a weekend or any time that you have some free time come to think of it! Where i live we have a big leisure facility on that they have bowling, swimming pool, with lagoon, flumes and other rides, ice rink that does ice skating, ice hockey, curling, restaurants, 12 screen cinema, bingo, and a huge living history museum which is fab. They lay free buses on to get there and back, theres masses of free parking and everywhere is open till late. The place is packed every night. Why cant they invest in something like that? Something that will cater for everyone and in all weathers, provide jobs & a boost for the economy, im sure if there were a facility like that people wold use it?

[Albert Tatlock]

So why would people come here and not go to http://www.silverstone.co.uk without having to be put up in a hotel, get a ferry/plane then maybe hire a car, and on and on - If not jurby then where? What crazier schemes have we blown more than £60million on? How do you approximate this cost? Not every one on the Island likes motorsport. What if it's built and fails? Silverstone had a 3 day crowd of 207,000 people in 2007, great - where are you going to put them?

Many people would do both Silverstone and here - and I'd bet for an F1 event you'd get a crowd of 20-30,000 manxies (remember that 1000's visited McDonalds on its first weekend of operation!). As for accomodation and infrastructure, there are plenty of racing courses around the world (that manage well) on which to do assessments and business modelling. Such a scheme would likely have to be a private/government joint venture, but I wouldn't underestimate what it could do for, especially the North, of the island (including expanding Ramsey/Jurby etc. in terms of housing and encouraging more people to live there rather than Douglas). It would all have to be assessed, costed and modelled properly, with developers involved to encourage the surrounding infrastructure - and of course the racing authorites would have to back it from the start. I could see it paying for itself in relatively few years, providing hundreds more jobs, supporting exisiting hotels and businesses, and attracting many additional businesses (and even more jobs) including attracting a lot more money into the islands financial sector. F1 is one of the biggest and best adverts you can have in the world today. You could even build a horse racing track and a conference centre etc. within it, have shows there etc. etc. The only limits are our imagination.

 

If people don't like motorsport, they don't have to go, and remember circuits are already closed roads. But the decision has to be made as whether we want visitors or not, and if we do, how are we to attract them here - rather than them going elsewhere. IMO it is best done by sticking to what we are good at, and what we have a reputation for already. If people don't like motorsport, I'm sure they'll like the associated additional infrastructure, such as better restaurants, bars, nightlife etc. that invariably has to be made available as part of the package, from which the locals would get benefit from all year round.

[homarus]

Some cracking replies, plumbing new depths of bitterness. Can't wait for the Parish Walk to become a "major international event" of the status of Cronk-y-Voddey sports day. Super-casino would be good though, and nuking Andreas airport for a dedicated racetrack gets my vote.

 

Seriously though :

 

Dry Ski Slope - why the hell not ? We've got miles of hills untroubled except for sheep and their associated perverts. The UK still lacks some of the most modern artificial slopes, and something like an Astroride slope would attract a lot of attention from the UK ski community. Check this one out. Stick in some sphering, tobogganing and the rest, too.

 

MTB tracks - with such a small area filled with mountainous bits, it could be a great MTB holiday destination. But we've only got one track planned. Not exactly going to put Wales in the shade, is it ?

 

Coast Sports - The surf is great, there's great kayaking, jet-skiing, wakeboarding, water-skiing, fishing, powerboating and sailing everywhere, but nobody doing it and nowhere for tourists to book it. With all the wind and sand busily eroding from the north, we've apparently got one of Europe's best sites for Kitesurfing, landboarding & kite buggying, but no provision for the sport. Look at Jersey's burgeoning surfing scene, the beachside bars and facilities & areas set aside for coast sports. Why not ? What about a 5-year programme investing in developing coast sports ?

 

The main problem for this stuff is that the IOM lacks cheap, accessible accommodation & cheap, accessible activities - it should be possible to get over for nearly f**k all on a foot passenger fare & then book bunkhouse accommodation on a farm & check out a big range of outdoor stuff to do from a range promoted by the DTL. Instead, even though you can get here reasonably cheaply, the accommodation is top dollar and it's a major pain in the arse finding something to do that isn't booked up weeks in advance. The DTL hasn't yet made the connection between investing in activites and numbers of tourists - a decent dry ski facility would be packing them in, but after getting its fingers burned on the tyre ring, "Bounty" replica and all that shite, the DTL is afraid to invest in anything. The few attractions over here are shoddy and cheap.

 

Looks good Mr Bastard!

 

Especially , when you consider we already have an electric Railway that is badly underused,

Say for example , you were to build a dry ski slope to run alongside the railway ,the trams could run up and down every 10--15mins.

Couple that with the fact that there are Cafe facilities already in place, it could be a goer?

[bluemonday]

The main problem for this stuff is that the IOM lacks cheap, accessible accommodation & cheap, accessible activities - it should be possible to get over for nearly f**k all on a foot passenger fare & then book bunkhouse accommodation on a farm & check out a big range of outdoor stuff to do from a range promoted by the DTL. Instead, even though you can get here reasonably cheaply, the accommodation is top dollar and it's a major pain in the arse finding something to do that isn't booked up weeks in advance. The DTL hasn't yet made the connection between investing in activites and numbers of tourists -

Agreed, there's the nub of the matter in one post. Personally I feel the DTL isn't as the saying goes fit for purpose. What do they actually do for the budget they get and thestaff and wages? Seems very little that has a positive result. Let's face it, the TT and MGP are self promoting but that's only a couple of weeks out of 52. It needs thinking outside the box - in fact they should take this topic, read and digest then act on the suggestions.

[b4mbi]

the department of tourism just dont seem to give a stuff about the island- which is a great shame. I was brought up on the island, and recently had the chance to move back, we declined because of the lack of things to do on a weekend or any time that you have some free time come to think of it! Where i live we have a big leisure facility on that they have bowling, swimming pool, with lagoon, flumes and other rides, ice rink that does ice skating, ice hockey, curling, restaurants, 12 screen cinema, bingo, and a huge living history museum which is fab. They lay free buses on to get there and back, theres masses of free parking and everywhere is open till late. The place is packed every night. Why cant they invest in something like that? Something that will cater for everyone and in all weathers, provide jobs & a boost for the economy, im sure if there were a facility like that people wold use it?

 

 

and how many people live within the catchment area of where you live? 80,000 or 1-2 million? FFS

[Karellen]

I think that we shouldnt loose sight of the point of tourism. It exists solely to put money into local people's pockets and tax pounds into the government's coffers. Many of the suggestions made here - such as a dry ski slope - will be great for the local population, but will they really attract people from England who can travel to snowdomes in England or in fact to the Alps far cheaper and easier, just as they can travel to Ireland, France or Spain for better beaches, better food, better accomodation etc. Will they really come here, to stay in (generally) rubbish accommodation and paying the extortionate fares demanded by our boat and airline operators?

 

Why don't we face up to the fact that the days of tourism are over and move on to look forwards, not backwards?. Sure visitors will still come here to visit friends, family etc. and hotels are still needed for business visitors. But why spend government budgets (our money) to try and attract people to walk and cycle and who will stay in tents or motorhomes - it doesnt make sense becuase the financial return to the island is minimal.

[bluemonday]

Couple of more ideas in the short break special interest market. Climbing and Boat angling. Some already under way but they need more publicity and effective marketing.

[Lastchance_Exception]

Cheap flights and ferry tickets as Phyllis said AND tax free in all retail stores.

 

You would have to monitor the stores such that they don't put the price up to what it was such that it's like most airports where its tax free but lots of profit.

 

This would draw people over to the Island to go shopping. If you're going to buy quite a few things it would be worth coming over to the island with your car. It's not coming over at all with the current prices on the sea cat so that would need changing.

[Albert Tatlock]

It's all very well talking about this activity and that activity, but surely if we are talking about bringing visitors over, we have to decide some very basic points first?, namely:

• Is tourism on the island realistic? - especially given the opportunities people have to travel elsewhere on the same (or less) budget in the UK? i.e. why should people pay extra to come here - when the same facilities are available usually via a (much cheaper) train/car ride away?
  
• Are we just paying lip-service to tourism - is it just a nostalgic discussion - when we could perhaps concentrate on diversifying the existing economy by attracting different businesses?
  
• If tourism is a realistic prospect - then what is the 'minimum' number of visitors that are required per year to retain a tourist infrastructure on the island (hotels etc.) e.g. is it 0.5 million, 1 million or X million additional visitors? What percentage of GDP should it be? - i.e. set a target.
  
• What activities are likely to encourage that number of visitors?
  
• What can we do here, that others cannot easily replicate in the UK, or that we can do as well or better, but which justifies the extra expense of coming here for that activity
  

Many of these ideas like dry ski-slopes etc. are all very well, but IMO I wouldn't invest my own money on such schemes, as I consider them unrealistic business propositions. People do have facilities in the UK (I learned to ski on one myself). The reality is that people have better places and facilties to do these things in the UK e.g. the Lake District, Devon, Cornwall etc. In others words the UK has lots of sea and hills too!!! ...but no expensive ferry journey to get to them - which for the same price they could fly off and do their activities on the med coast. If there aren't too many facilities in the UK - you have to ask yourself why? - and you'll find the chances are the answer is that because they don't pay.

[Overdose]

MTB tracks - with such a small area filled with mountainous bits, it could be a great MTB holiday destination. But we've only got one track planned. Not exactly going to put Wales in the shade, is it ?

 

May I point you here: http://www.lulu.com/content/991700

 

We have more than one track, infact the book gives you 15 various routes. Also you only have to call into one of the various bike shops to pick up route guides too.

[Max Power]

So why would people come here and not go to http://www.silverstone.co.uk without having to be put up in a hotel, get a ferry/plane then maybe hire a car, and on and on - If not jurby then where? What crazier schemes have we blown more than £60million on? How do you approximate this cost? Not every one on the Island likes motorsport. What if it's built and fails? Silverstone had a 3 day crowd of 207,000 people in 2007, great - where are you going to put them?

Many people would do both Silverstone and here - and I'd bet for an F1 event you'd get a crowd of 20-30,000 manxies (remember that 1000's visited McDonalds on its first weekend of operation!). As for accomodation and infrastructure, there are plenty of racing courses around the world (that manage well) on which to do assessments and business modelling. Such a scheme would likely have to be a private/government joint venture, but I wouldn't underestimate what it could do for, especially the North, of the island (including expanding Ramsey/Jurby etc. in terms of housing and encouraging more people to live there rather than Douglas). It would all have to be assessed, costed and modelled properly, with developers involved to encourage the surrounding infrastructure - and of course the racing authorites would have to back it from the start. I could see it paying for itself in relatively few years, providing hundreds more jobs, supporting exisiting hotels and businesses, and attracting many additional businesses (and even more jobs) including attracting a lot more money into the islands financial sector. F1 is one of the biggest and best adverts you can have in the world today. You could even build a horse racing track and a conference centre etc. within it, have shows there etc. etc. The only limits are our imagination.

 

If people don't like motorsport, they don't have to go, and remember circuits are already closed roads. But the decision has to be made as whether we want visitors or not, and if we do, how are we to attract them here - rather than them going elsewhere. IMO it is best done by sticking to what we are good at, and what we have a reputation for already. If people don't like motorsport, I'm sure they'll like the associated additional infrastructure, such as better restaurants, bars, nightlife etc. that invariably has to be made available as part of the package, from which the locals would get benefit from all year round.

The fact is that the Government only need to build a circuit and lease it to an operator, they don't have to market anything or run a single event should they not wish to! Just impose conditions on the lease that events should be to a certain calibre!

The impetus for growth I feel would be fantastic and the risk relatively low!

I'm getting excited now!