New drive to boost city tourist numbers

Magical Leeds will see Leeds Business Improvement District (Leeds BID) and VisitLeeds forge a new partnership aimed at raising the profile of the city, to increase visitor numbers and encourage overnight stays over the festive period, by highlighting Leeds’ visitor offering, attractions and events.

The marketing campaign will include advertising, PR, video and social media focused on attracting audiences within a key catchment areas of the UK, including those between a one and two-hour drive time from the city and along the East Coast Main Line, to encourage them to extend their trip to an overnight stay or even longer.

Funding for the project comes from Leeds BID, which was set up to drive commercial investment in the city centre, and supported by Leeds Council, VisitLeeds, Trinity Leeds, as well as a selection of key city entre businesses.

Chief executive of the Leeds BID, Andrew Cooper, said: “Leeds is a city with a significant visitor offering, and through our major investment in this campaign, we hope that we can align the city with other major European destinations over the winter season.

“Leeds is continually ranked as a top UK city for visitors, but it’s important that we don’t rest on our laurels. We need to look ahead to meet changing customer expectations and highlight the unique experiences on offer within the city.”

Jennifer Young, Associate Director of Visitor Economy at Leeds Council, said the extra investment into the project enabled the council to bring “more energy and greater ambition” to the campaign.