Isle of Man welcomes rising visitor numbers
Peel Castle is one of the more popular sites on the Isle of Man The Isle of Man passenger survey has revealed a 6.5 per cent increase in tourist visitors to the Island in 2015, rising to 134,610.
Marking the seventh year of continuous growth in tourist visits to the Island, the survey found that in the last calendar year visitors added around £10 million to the Island economy, with an average of £378 spent per visit.
The figures have been swiftly followed by the results of a report commissioned by the Island’s government in to the current condition of the hotel industry.
The report, carried out by Hotel Solutions, highlights where the Island should invest in its hotel infrastructure going forward, to ensure continued tourism growth in a market where expectations towards accommodation provision are constantly rising.
Angela Byrne, head of tourism, Isle of Man said: “It’s been another great year for tourism on the Isle of Man, following a continuous effort to promote the Island as a destination for UK travellers looking for a break away without going too far from home.
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“We are, however, constantly looking at ways to improve what the Island has to offer tourists, and this year commissioned Hotel Solutions to provide us with independent feedback and advice on our hotel sector.
“We recognise that a healthy hotel industry is vitally important if we are to continue growing the number of leisure visitors to the Island and believe that the government need to work together and in even stronger partnership with the tourism industry on the Island to ensure that we continue to invest back in to the infrastructure that gives us so much, to make the visitor experience even better going forwards.”
The Isle of Man is easily accessible from mainland UK, and there are now direct flights available from 11 airports across the UK and Ireland, including Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester and London (Gatwick/City) with flights taking from 30 minutes to an hour, while the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company offers ferry travel from Liverpool to Heysham on a daily basis.