Tourism Business Monitor 20 Visitor Attractions Report Wave 2 Easter up until the end of May
Background, objectives and research method Tourism Business Monitor designed to measure, monitor and understand tourism business performance and confidence and the factors which influence them. Telephone survey conducted five times per year immediately following key tourism periods among around 300 visitor attractions including mix by region, attraction type, size (measured by annual visitor admissions) and free / paid admission. Questions on hot topics included on a periodic basis. Fieldwork dates: 20: 1-5 20, reviewing the Easter up until the end of May 20: 5-9 20, reviewing the Christmas and New Year period 20 20: 3-9 20, reviewing mid-ember until the end of the October 20: 8-20, reviewing the period from mid-y up until the end of the summer holidays 20: -20 y 20, reviewing the period after the Easter holidays up until mid-y 20: 24 May - 1 20, reviewing the Easter period 20 20: 6-12 uary 20, reviewing the Christmas and New Year period 20 20: 4-10 20, reviewing mid-ember until the end of October 20: 9-20, reviewing the period from mid-y up until the end of the summer holidays 20: 11-19 y 20, reviewing the period after the Easter holidays up until mid-y 20: -21 il 20, reviewing the period from uary until the end of the Easter holidays 20: 7-20, reviewing Christmas and New Year period 2012 2
Attractions sample targets (total 300) Region North (North East, North West, Yorkshire) Midlands (East Midlands, East, Heart of England) South (South East, South West) 84 95 105 London 16 Size (visitors p.a) Over 100k 57 50-100k 35 20-50k 57 Under 20k 1 Type Historic 54 Museum/gallery 78 Other indoor 57 Other outdoor 111 Admission charge Free 129 Paid 171 This is the target sample for each wave, reflecting the profile of attractions in England. There are minor variations wave on wave, which are corrected by weighting the profile if needed. 3
Key Findings The attractions market has continued to expand since the start of the year, with over half of attractions reporting increases in visitor numbers. Larger attractions, those with an outdoor component and small town/city attractions experienced the strongest increases in visitor numbers. The sector saw growth from both domestic and overseas visitors, although growth in overseas visitors was much more associated with paid attractions. There was a slight decline in levels of satisfaction with recent business performance amongst attractions, although it remained strong at around 91% satisfied. Explanations of positive business performance focused on recent refurbishments, events, marketing/social media, recommendations and better weather during this period. Looking ahead until the end of the school summer holidays 20, all attraction types except towns and indoor attractions have experienced a decrease of confidence levels compared with uary. In contrast, optimism for the remainder of 20 has stayed very positive, with over two thirds of attractions indicating they think this year will be better than 20. 4
Business Dashboards 5
Business Performance Dashboard: Attractions VISITOR NUMBERS Visitor numbers (%) 18 19 Versus same period previous year Visitor numbers for Easter up until the end of May period compared with same period 20 (%) Under 20k 55 24 21 23 24 60 56 Down Same Up Over 20k Indoors Outdoors 56 65 61 26 23 21 18 17 YTD Mixed 63 19 17 SATISFACTION Satisfaction (%) 8 1 53 38 Satisfied with Under 20k business performance Not at all Over 20k Not very Quite Very Satisfaction with Performance during period (%) Indoors Outdoors 30 31 46 43 59 58 47 49 89 93 89 91 Mixed 40 52 92 Q3/4 & Q6, Q7/8 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE 20: Easter up until the end of May 6
Business Confidence Dashboard: Attractions % Very confident % Fairly confident 89 94 92 91 89 98 93 97 92 95 97 64 62 62 56 63 64 58 54 55 51 56 25 32 30 36 26 34 35 42 37 45 41 20 y 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 Until early Summer 20 Until end of school summer holidays Until end of October Until end of the year Until the end of Easter Until early Summer Until end of school summer holidays Until end of October Until end of the year Until end of Easter Until the end of the school summer holidays 96 98 93 98 99 61 51 56 52 60 35 46 37 46 39 Less than 20k Over 20k Indoor Outdoor Mixed Q PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR FUTURE BUSINESS CONFIDENCE 20: Up until end of the school summer holidays 7
Visitor Profile 8
Changing Visitor Profile (year-to-date vs. previous year): Attractions Attractions have continued to report increases in domestic and overseas visitors, although the level of increase has reduced since the start of the year. Up Down NET: Up - Down Domestic visitors 39 22 35 23 26 45 43 44 36 37 43 43 12 11 12 11 10 11 10 11 10 54 42 +41 +32 Overseas visitors 28 21 35 17 32 38 43 10 9 30 29 20 35 36 35 9 31 10 31 12 +19 Q12 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE 20: uary up until the end of May 9
Changing Visitor Profile: Attraction type Growth of visitors strongest for the domestic audience across all categories of attraction. Up Same Down NET: Up - Down Under 20k 42 48 9 33 Over 20k 42 48 10 32 Domestic visitors Indoors Outdoors Mixed 33 51 42 53 41 51 8 7 18 43 35 Under 20k 31 54 16 Overseas visitors Over 20k Indoors Outdoors Mixed 32 21 33 40 60 59 56 54 9 19 12 6 23 2 21 34 Q12 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE 20: uary up until the end of May 10
Changing Visitor Profile: Charging Charging attractions did better at growing the overseas market than free attractions. Up Same Down NET: Up - Down Paid 42 44 29 Domestic visitors Free 42 53 5 37 Paid 38 51 11 27 Overseas visitors Free 22 64 7 Q12 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE 20: uary up until the end of May 11
Past Performance 12
Visitor numbers: Year-on-year changes The attractions market has continued to expand since the start of the year, with over half of attractions reporting increases in visitor numbers. The proportion of attractions (18%) reporting a decline in visitors for Easter to May compared with last year is at its lowest since 20. % 20 51 9 23 6 11 Up Slightly up Exactly same YTD 20 47 9 24 3 16 Slightly down Down 43 35 49 66 55 41 59 52 64 61 62 60 Up Down -34-47 -29-23 -26-31 -18-21 -22-18 -23-18 20 20 y 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 PERIODS ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE : Christmas and New Year period / : Easter period / : Easter up until the end of May / : After Easter holidays up until mid-y /: Mid-y up until the end of the summer holidays / : Mid-ember until the end of October Q3/4, Q7/8
Visitor numbers: Year-on-year changes by attraction type Down Slightly down Exactly same Slightly up Up There is a great deal of consistency in recent business performance across different types of attractions. However, larger attractions and those with an outdoor component performed slightly better for the recent period and also for the year to date. % Less than 20k Over 20k Indoor Outdoor Mixed 12 17 9 3 24 26 7 10 11 3 21 10 55 3 5 23 26 9 8 49 47 22 1 28 12 8 7 5 9 5 23 25 19 9 10 9 52 53 54 20 3 19 7 51 38 47 44 20 YTD 20 20 YTD 20 20 YTD 20 20 YTD 20 20 YTD 20 Q3/4, Q7/8 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE 20: Easter up until the end of May
Changing business performance: By attraction type & location Overall, the attractions market has performed consistently well over the last year, with over half all types of attractions reporting increases in visitor numbers. There was more variation by destination type, with towns performing well, but fewer seaside attractions reporting growth than in uary. ATTRACTION TYPE % Visitors up on last year 68 67 67 60 58 61 63 64 56 64 62 58 52 53 44 53 52 55 51 41 37 53 47 39 50 32 37 41 41 29 35 20 84 65 68 64 71 64 69 63 60 63 67 63 61 58 64 58 51 56 51 55 Less than 20k Over 20k Indoor Outdoor Mixed 22 21 % Very Satisfied 37 36 27 51 53 46 46 51 49 48 48 46 47 47 45 32 38 39 47 48 44 43 33 38 45 43 36 42 40 40 40 31 36 34 28 36 32 32 30 25 LOCATION % Visitors up on last year % Very Satisfied Seaside 70 71 68 53 62 49 43 50 41 46 54 49 32 44 41 17 64 65 68 54 62 57 64 67 55 65 63 39 37 51 56 50 45 27 76 68 59 47 69 62 61 46 Large town or city Small town Countryside / village 36 40 33 26 41 32 34 22 20 25 50 26 24 52 48 48 46 42 48 45 45 36 45 3934 44 3843 43 41 36 39 37 32 32 33 35 28 Q3/4, Q6 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE 20: Easter up until the end of May
Changing business performance: By admission charge and VAQAS A similar proportion of paid vs. free and VAQAS members/ non-members reported increases in visitor numbers. ADMISSION % Visitors up on last year % Very Satisfied 34 35 54 47 66 66 57 53 43 39 63 65 55 64 63 64 60 60 53 47 60 60 Free Paid 26 18 35 30 47 38 37 33 36 21 45 38 37 33 55 50 48 44 40 40 38 38 20 20 VAQAS % Visitors up on last year % Very Satisfied 46 30 53 48 63 61 67 54 46 39 62 58 66 47 71 64 62 61 62 65 62 58 VAQAS Members VAQAS Nonmembers 24 22 29 33 47 35 36 40 35 27 45 36 41 35 51 41 48 44 37 43 43 38 Q3/4, Q6 20 PERIOD ASKED ABOUT FOR PAST BUSINESS PERFORMANCE 20: Easter up until the end of May 20 16
Positive verbatim comments on business performance: Attractions We went from paid entry to free entry. A series of little events helped us. We had a series of joint events with a museum nearby to promote the facility. Because I think we are becoming better known in the area through just word of mouth. We re also on the council website. We had a recent refurbishment which is meaning more people are coming to the property. The weather. We did more marketing this year. I think it s partly because of the council. They try their best to publish the place. 17
Negative verbatim comments on business performance: Attractions Being in a rural setting, the weather is an extremely important factor. The other issue is that the public are still facing financial difficulties. Tourists are just not coming to the village. Several businesses have closed so there is not much for them to look at. I think the people have not had enough money to spend since Christmas. I think it might ve been because of the election. People were nervous about what was going to happen. 18
Case Studies NATIONAL CIVIL WAR CENTRE & NEWARK MUSEUM The National Civil War Centre & Newark Museum is a newly opened attraction, that has hit the ground running (charging!) with visitors increasing on a daily basis. Free, historic attraction with over 100k visitors per year Glyn Hughes, Curator, believes their success is largely down to the vast array of events that they have held. Prior to the site s opening, they ran talks and tours that allowed the public to take a look behind the scene of the site s transformation. This helped to enthuse the local audience and generate a sense of pride in their museum. This was followed by a three-day opening celebration that transformed Newark into a 17th century town and attracted 4,000 to 5,000 visitors from the UK and overseas. Glyn explains It is important to offer visitors as many touch points to history as possible even if that means going outside the walls of the museum. Glyn recognises that the nature of engagement is important. History is the people s story. They should feel that they re part of what happened and connect with it. Our site facilitates this through its events by allowing visitors to experience something of what it was like. For example, workshops that allow visitors to see a barbers surgeon at work. Finally, the centre places a great deal of importance on visitor feedback, acting upon it promptly, where appropriate. This helps to enhance the visitor experience and gives the visitors the feeling they are part of it. 19
Future Performance 20
Confidence for forthcoming period: Attractions Looking ahead until the end of the school summer holidays 20, all attraction types except towns and indoor attractions have experienced a decrease of confidence levels compared to last report. BY TYPE: For period up until the end of the school summer holidays % Very confident 29 28 27 24 38 36 35 36 35 36 31 35 31 34 2932 3031 33 29 33 27 30 31 33 30 26 31 23 28 22 26 24 22 17 19 44 44 43 41 42 38 38 37 26 52 51 49 46 46 39 39 37 34 35 Less than 20k Over 20k Indoor Outdoor Mixed y BY LOCATION: For period up until the end of the school summer holidays % Very confident 47 51 39 45 49 48 40 42 42 37 30 36 38 36 41 43 38 31 33 47 40 43 45 28 27 30 29 34 24 35 2529 39 37 26 23 27 31 24 34 23 28 26 29 17 20 17 y Seaside* Large town or city Small town Countryside / village *CAUTION: SMALL BASE SIZES Q 21
Business optimism for 20: Attractions Optimism for the remainder of 20 has stayed very positive, with over two thirds of attractions indicating they think this year will be better than 20. % Much worse than last year A little worse than last year The same as last year A little better than last year Much better than last year 1 1 2 2 8 4 1 5 1 2 2 21 1 10 7 7 7 6 8 6 28 28 27 33 32 24 24 30 24 34 33 40 41 48 45 47 50 48 46 46 43 45 12 23 23 17 19 20 21 19 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 20 Q 22
Positive verbatim comments on business optimism for 20: Attractions Because we are getting better known. People are making more of an effort to visit. We have just been very busy since the exhibition. We are also getting lots of repeat visitors. It s because the individual spend is higher. I think our profile has been raised so more visitors and few financial cuts which has made it easier. We have new management and we are improving the visitor offer. Because we have maximised on the things people like. We are having a big camp in y and are fully booked for this event. We are open 363 days in a year. Previously we were not open so many days. Doing extra marketing. We are making arrangements for group visits. Qb 23
Performance and confidence snapshot: 20 Visitor Numbers () Confidence (End of school summer holidays) Visitor numbers per annum (%) Type (%) Charge(%) VAQAS(%) Location (%) Up Same Down Very Very / fairly TOTAL (%) 60 23 18 41 97 Less than 20k 55 24 21 35 96 20k or over 65 21 46 98 20k-50k 57 24 20 44 98 50k-100k 64 23 46 97 Over 100k 76 17 7 48 98 Indoor 56 26 18 37 93 Outdoor 61 23 17 46 98 Mixed 63 19 17 39 99 Paid 60 20 20 36 99 Free 60 26 47 94 Yes 65 19 34 97 No 58 25 17 43 97 Seaside 46 29 25 45 92 Large town / city 62 22 16 48 97 Small town 69 23 8 47 96 Rural 61 21 19 34 98 25