Norwich tourist information centre shuts as visitors go online

The tourist information centre, based at the Forum in Norwich, has seen visitor numbers fall by half in recent years

A city tourist information centre is to close as people move their searches online.

The outlet at The Forum in Norwich city centre was closed in December due to the pandemic.

The city council said it would remain shut and Visit Norwich, which the council partly funds, would continue to offer online resources about the city.

It said the six staff members "have been offered redeployment". The closure will save the council about £110,000.

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The Norwich tourist information centre will stay shut due to a lack of demand, the council has decided

The information centre opened in the Forum in 2001 but in-person visits had been falling steadily since 2012, the council said.

Figures for 2019 revealed a 50% reduction compared to 2012.

The decline comes despite visitor numbers to the East Anglian city increasing from 6.9m in 2012 to 13.1m by 2019.

"More and more people are choosing to find local information elsewhere and our in-person visits have been decreasing even before the pandemic hit," said Nikki Rotsos, director of strategy and culture at Norwich City Council.

"As with many council services over the last few years, and especially so in light of the pandemic, we had been looking at what the future held for the tourist information centre in a growing digital world."