Hotels link-up will boost tourism

Aug 21 2008 by Iain Laing, The Journal

LEADING hotels from across County Durham have joined forces to form a new industry group.

The Durham Hotels Association brings together 25 large hotels in the county to look at market trends, share intelligence and discuss strategy with the County Durham Tourism Partnership.

It will also act as a natural partner for the Durham Attractions Group, consisting of leading visitor attractions, which was formed by CDTP in December 2006.

Deborah Haines, general manager of the new Radisson SAS Hotel Durham, which is set to open on November 1 – is chair of the association.

“Durham has enormous potential as a visitor destination and its new Hotels Association recognises the great benefits in collaborating on key tourism projects.

“We will work closely with County Durham Tourism Partnership to make sure that where appropriate, initiatives and activities are joined up in such a way that they benefit and grow the wider county economy, something which contributes to the success of our individual businesses and those of other accommodation providers.”

Melanie Sensicle, chief executive of County Durham Tourism Partnership, said: “The new Durham Hotels Association is a giant step forward for the county’s tourism industry and one we have encouraged strongly. For the first time, our major hotels will work together, share intelligence, and provide a collective drive to position Durham as one of the UK’s leading visitor destinations.”

Tourism is currently worth £589m to County Durham, contributing £1.6m to the economy per day, and sustaining 12,000 jobs.