Hotels at heart of 'Happy Valley' tourism hopes

Crowds enjoying Sting's gig at the Piece Hall, Halifax, last summer

Hit television shows such as Gentleman Jack, Last Tango in Halifax and Happy Valley – along with the emergence of the Piece Hall as a world-class concert venue – have helped put Calderdale in the spotlight.

Now, tourism leaders are hoping to capitalise on the area’s cultural credentials to draw in the holiday crowds for longer stays.

A five-year tourism action plan has been approved by officials, with the aim of building on the £430m tourism brought to Calderdale’s economy in 2022 – a 9% increase since 2019.

It is hoped that the top priority will be building more high-quality hotels and accommodation.

Nicky Chance-Thompson, the chief executive of the Piece Hall in Halifax – which has hosted a string of high-profile gigs by the likes of Sting, Queens of the Stone Age and Rag 'n' Bone Man – said tourism was “incredibly important" to the area’s future, but ensuring the supply of accommodation lived up to potential demand was a “challenge”.

Suranne Jones and Sophie Rundle in Gentleman Jack

Official data shows about 8.2m visitors made day and overnight trips to Calderdale in 2022, benefiting local businesses to the tune of about £335m.

“It’s such a beautiful borough, made up of lots of market towns with incredible history [and] a rich seam of culture,” Ms Chance-Thompson said.

She praised the “ambitious” and “brave” vision that allowed the “glorious” Piece Hall to be brought to life a decade ago – especially during a period of austerity.

However, she added: “Quite often when people are coming to the gigs, they are coming up for a weekend, so we always encourage people to come and explore.

“The challenge is the amount of accommodation rather than the interest in coming to stay here. The tourism market is really important, but [it's about] ensuring there are enough places for them to stay.”

Nicky Chance-Thompson, chief executive of the Piece Hall in Halifax

On Monday, a meeting of the decision-making executive at Calderdale Council heard that, despite the challenges of the pandemic and the cost of living crisis, there had been “real growth” in the area's visitor economy over the past five years, helped by exposure on screen and the “local distinctiveness" of lesser-known towns and landmarks.

The new tourism plan would help "improve the size and quality of the tourism sector", the meeting was told, while "making sure that we who live in this place also feel the benefit".

Calderdale is marking its 50th anniversary as a borough with a year of culture, called CultureDale, which complements similar events elsewhere in West Yorkshire, including Bradford's forthcoming tenure as the UK City of Culture in 2025.

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