International visitors fail to return to Cumbria after Covid - tourism boss

Rising living costs and a reluctance to travel are being blamed for low international visitor numbers

Businesses in Cumbria have had a year of "ups and downs" after travellers from abroad failed to return, a tourism boss has said.

Cumbria Tourism said only one per cent of visitors were from abroad in 2022, down from 15% in 2019.

Gill Haigh, managing director at Cumbria Tourism, blamed rising living costs and a reluctance to travel in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

However, she said the county was attracting more younger visitors.

In total, 65% of visitors to Cumbria this year were aged between 25 and 59, up from 45% in 2018.

Ms Haigh said Cumbria Tourism had been touring schools and colleges to try and get younger people, or those wanting a job change, to consider the hospitality industry.

Cumbria Tourism said the hospitality industry offered "fantastic career opportunities"

She said: "It's been a year of ups and downs but on the whole a positive one.

"We've been trying to get the message across that tourism and hospitality are fantastic industries.

"They are often characterised as low skilled and low paid, but I think that those looking at these careers would be surprised by the salaries they can attract.

"There are also tremendous opportunities for career progression."

Gill Haigh said it was a year of "ups and downs" but customer satisfaction remained high

The sector is usually worth £3bn a year to the local economy, but figures released in January 2021 showed coronavirus had led to losses of about £2bn.

The effects of coronavirus on visitor numbers to the national park had previously been described as "equivalent to three winter seasons in a row".

Ms Haigh said businesses were rising to the challenge of coping with less resources by, for example, reducing their menu options and changing opening times.

"Businesses are looking to innovate, but we must make sure that the customer experience isn't damaged.

"We've just done a visitor face-to-face survey and satisfaction rates, including value for money remain really high, which is very positive," she added.