2007 was a boom year for business tourism in Leeds. The City has been named as one of the UK’s top 5 meeting destinations in every major independent business tourism survey undertaken last year. Leeds has appeared in the top 5 rankings of both the UK Conference Market Survey (UKCMS) and the United Kingdom Tourism Survey (UKTS).

The City was named as the 4th most popular meetings destination for Association Conferences and the 5th most popular meetings destination for Corporate Events in the UKCMS. The UKCMS surveys the buying habits and preferences of over 600 conference organisers and is widely considered to be the most reliable benchmark in the industry.

Leeds had risen sharply in the rankings compared to the previous years, being overtaken only by the major cities of London, Manchester and Birmingham.

The UKTS - a national consumer survey undertaken by the UK’s national tourist organisations – compounded this surge in popularity by ranking Leeds as the 4th most visited city in the UK for business visits.

Nicola Lockwood, Head of Conference Leeds explains:

“it’s fabulous to see that Leeds is ranked so highly in these surveys. We have seen a boom in visitors due to the immense pace of development here. With an explosion in shopping, entertainment and meeting venues, Leeds has become a “must see” destination for delegates. “

She added:

“Superb new facilities like Saviles Hall at the Royal Armouries and new hotels such as the Radisson mean that Leeds has the capacity to handle large scale events. This and our reputation for providing value for money, clearly shows that Leeds is an attractive alternative to other major UK cities. It is great to see that we are punching well above our weight and are giving major destinations like Manchester and London stiff competition!”

Conference Leeds, the Conference Bureau for Leeds and West Yorkshire has recently expanded to cope with demand and has now become a “super” convention bureau, representing almost 250 venues across the region.

Conference Leeds is supported by Yorkshire Forward, the regional development agency. Andy Tordoff, Head of Rural Renaissance and Tourism for Yorkshire Forward said:

“I am not surprised to see that Leeds is ranked so highly in these national surveys. Tourism makes a significant contribution to the region’s economy and these results demonstrate that investment in business tourism is paying dividends.”

ENDS

EDITORS NOTES:
Nicola Lockwood is available for interview on 0113 220 6356,
email: nicola.lockwood@conference-leeds.com
About Conference Leeds

Conference Leeds is the organisation responsible for promoting meetings and events across Leeds and West Yorkshire. The recently restructured Conference Leeds is now a “super convention bureau” representing almost 250 venues across the area.

Conference Leeds is a Leeds City Council organisation with funding from Yorkshire Forward, Bradford, Wakefield, Kirklees and Calderdale Councils.

Conference Leeds can offer a free venue finding service for anyone wanting to host an event in Leeds and West Yorkshire and markets the area through a series of initiatives.
Business tourism is worth over £450million a year in direct expenditure to the Yorkshire economy.

About Yorkshire Forward

Conference Leeds is supported by Yorkshire Forward. Yorkshire Forward is the regional development agency for Yorkshire and the Humber, it exists to represent and help generate sustainable business for the region’s tourism industry, an industry worth £4.1billion to the region annually and employing over 165,000 people, making it one of the largest and fastest growing industries in the region. Yorkshire’s goal, as identified in Bold Vision, Bright Future - The Tourism Marketing Strategy for Yorkshire and Humber 2006 - 2010, is to achieve and increase in the value of tourism earnings to the region by 5% per annum to £5.9bn by 2010.

UKTS Research

The United Kingdom Tourism Survey (UKTS) is a national consumer survey measuring the volume and value of tourism trips taken by residents of the United Kingdom. It is jointly sponsored by VisitBritain, VisitScotland, Visit Wales and the Northern Ireland Tourist Board.
The survey covers trips away from home lasting one night or more taken by UK residents for the purpose of holidays, visits to friends and relatives, business and conferences or any other purpose. Tourism is measured in terms of volume (trips taken, nights away) and value (expenditure on trips).
UKCMS

The UKCMS survey is undertaken annually by the Meetings Industry Association and surveys 600 UK buyers.


Further details can be obtained from:
Nicky Lockwood
Conference Leeds
T: 0113 220 6356
E: nicola.lockwood@conference-leeds.com

Press release issued by
Sue Crawley
Fire Circle Ltd
T: 01642 714999
E: sue@fire-circle.co.uk