Coastal destinations and tourism businesses are calling for a sea-change – they want a stronger voice, to work more collaboratively, to draw attention to the coast’s valuable assets and, crucially, to alter perceptions among the public and the media of what there is to see and do on the coast.

Their views, along with findings from new and existing research, have been brought together to create the first Vision, Strategy and Action Plan for the development of tourism on the coast, coordinated by the National Coastal Tourism Academy (NCTA). Read the complete Vision here.

Last year, coastal tourism regained its position as the largest domestic overnight holiday sector, worth more than £8bn. And coastal tourism is a significant employer estimated to be worth £3.6bn, similar in size to the telecoms sector, but the coast has significant unrealised potential and faces stiff competition from city and rural breaks.

“Coastal communities face a number of unique challenges and to date they have not been given the attention and recognition they deserve,” says Samantha Richardson, NCTA director.

“By working together and with a concerted effort to raise awareness of the fascinating tourism product the English coast can offer, we believe economic growth on the coast – jobs and long term sustainable employment – can be achieved.

“Coastal tourism is a mixed picture across the country, with some coastal destinations thriving while others are achieving below average growth for tourism.

“The NCTA has spent three years examining the challenges on the coast – skills gaps, staff shortages, the problem of seasonality, public transport – as well as researching opportunities to develop tourism off-peak and we’ve identified key areas for growth that would work for the coast.

“But the time has come for a holistic approach and through this Vision coastal destinations can work together to tackle issues that affect all coastal communities and share learning of what works to benefit everyone.”

Last year the National Coastal Tourism Academy staged the first Coastal Tourism Forum where more than one hundred coastal destinations, tourism businesses and industry leaders discussed the need for a co-ordinated Vision and Action Plan. The new Vision is based on their recommendations and on the research of the NCTA, Bournemouth University, Sheffield Hallam University and others.

Below you can download:

A Summary or the full Coastal Visitor Economy – Vision, Strategy and Action Plan

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