Chief Executive of Visit England visits Margate

Chief Executive of VisitEngland James Berresford visited Margate this week (Tuesday 12 August) to witness first-hand the developments at Dreamland and the regeneration of the area since the arrival of the Turner Contemporary.

Mr. Berresford enjoyed an itinerary developed by Visit Kent including the Dreamland Expo, lunch at Sands Hotel, visits to the Turner Contemporary and the Visitor Information Team and a tour of Margate Old Town.

The visit also served to demonstrate activities being undertaken as part of the Thanet Destination Management Plan and to highlight the great opportunity for VisitEngland to support the development of a major tourism destination.

VisitEngland already has a good relationship with the area and supported the Pride of Thanet Tourism Awards which took place during English Tourism Week and features the area in its range of marketing and press activity.

Leader of Thanet District Council Cllr Iris Johnston said, “We take tourism incredibly seriously in Thanet and this was a great opportunity to showcase the fantastic tourism offer available in Margate and Thanet. We are developing into a leading quality destination and the Destination Management Plan is helping us work with local businesses to achieve this.

“There’s huge opportunity here for further growth, creating more jobs, and we welcomed the opportunity to demonstrate the area’s unique buzz and immense potential to VisitEngland.”

Mr. Berresford said, “” I’ve thoroughly enjoyed visiting Margate and know from first-hand experience what a great experiences the destination offers visitors.  The local investment has reaped its reward in terms of developing the product and as a result has created important jobs for the local area.”

Tourism is worth around £2.3 million to the Thanet economy and supports over 5,000 jobs. The council is positive with the support of Visit England that Margate and Thanet’s tourism offer will continue to thrive.

VisitEngland is the country’s national tourist board. Its role is to grow the value of tourism by working in partnership with the industry to deliver inspirational marketing campaigns and to provide advocacy for the industry and visitors.