Do Music Festivals Contribute to Tourism?

Tourism Insights (www.insights.org.uk), the authoritative subscription site which monitors, analyses and interprets trends in tourism in the UK, looks this month at the real value and impact of the Music Festival.

Whether it is reported with war correspondent-style dispatches from muddy fields looking more like a humanitarian crisis than a form of entertainment, or smiling raves about an awesome performance by a major artist, festivals are now a landmark on the British summer horizon. From Glastonbury with its 170,000 strong audience and its ability to dominate the headlines, to a 400 person tipi gathering on a distant hill, they are unavoidable. But what, if anything, do they bring to their local community other than inconvenience, noise, scandal and pollution?

In a newly available article on Tourism Insights, travel journalist Chris Haslam considers in detail Glastonbury, The Big Chill, Sonisphere, Isle of Wight, T in the Park and Latitude festivals to weigh up the evidence about the contribution these events make to the local and national tourism economy. He also identifies the key opportunities for festival organizers, tourism-based businesses and local authorities.

The scale of some of the festivals is huge. All kinds of businesses are involved, and the amount of money brought in locally can be vast: the Isle of Wight council estimates £10 million spend just from festival visitors; Latitude Festival sees a very high level of allied local hotel, B&B and self catering accommodation bookings; T in the Park generated an additional £7.3 million spend for Scotland and £2.08 million for the Tayside region in particular; and visitors to Glastonbury festival account for a seventh of the annual £180 million spend for tourism activity in the Mendip region.

Drawing on market research data, interviews with local authorities, local businesses, owners and managers of attractions Chris Haslam provides a fascinating picture of the real opportunities and benefits that these festivals provide, concluding that these festivals are one of the good news stories for British tourism and the wider economy if the local community and the festival organizers work together proactively. Even when it rains.
Tourism Insights (www.insights.org.uk) publishes 4-6 new articles a month on key topical issues for the tourism industry which can be bought on a one-off or a subscription basis. Other new topics covered include:

• Planning and development of new seaside hotels
• Iconic buildings and tourism
• Accessibility: progress and understanding

For more information, or to arrange comment or an interview on any of these topics, please contact Jemima Bamford at Raft PR on [email protected] Tourism Insights is published by VisitBritain in association with tourism together