New figures show tourism on rise in West Lindsey

The figures come from the most recent STEAM report (a measurement of tourism) and showed an increase of 5.3 per cent from 2017.

Visitors staying in the area as part of a holiday or short break accounted for approximately 226 thousand visits and 849 thousand nights in local accommodation.

In total, staying visitors generated a total economic impact of £48.3 million for local businesses and communities, with £5.25 million being spent on local accommodation, staying 3.6 nights on average.

Faye Pudney, West Lindsey District Council’s Visitor Economy Officer said: “Whether you’re a history hunter or looking to explore the great outdoors, there’s plenty to see and do in the district and these figures confirm this with 3.09 million visitors coming to West Lindsey during 2018.

“The visitor economy is vitally important to West Lindsey, and with the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower coming up next year, we’re looking forward to inviting more visitors, both locally and internationally to the district.”

The figures have also been welcomed by Coun Paul Howitt-Cowan, member champion for tourism at West Lindsey District Council.

He said: “Visitors play a vital role in supporting more than 1,784 full time equivalent jobs locally.

“We have a number of great places to visit, so I am not surprised that we attracted more than three million visitors to West Lindsey in 2018.

“Our three historic market towns Caistor, Market Rasen and Gainsborough are all rich in heritage. And the launch of the commemorative year of the sailing of the Mayflower – I anticipate more visitors will follow.

The STEAM (Scarborough Tourism Economic Assessment Model) report quantifies the local economic impact of tourism, from both staying and day visitors, through analysis and use of a variety of inputs including visitor attraction numbers, tourist accommodation bedstock, visitor expenditure levels and transport use levels.