Alan Payling meets the tourism professionals at Visit Exeter to find out what they and organisations like them have to offer coach tour operators
Tourism is a very serious matter given the business that visitors can generate when they visit a city, town or resort. When they also come by the coach load, the people driving passengers their way will see the red carpet rolled out and a warm welcome will await them – not to mention lots of helpful information. But coach operators do have to ask. So if they call someone like Debbie Lewis, Marketing Officer at Visit Exeter, and the tourism body for Exeter City Council, then they will have a lot of professional expertise and knowledge at their disposal. Debbie can help operators make their visit to places like Exeter a success and, at a time when everyone will tell you that there is no such thing as a free lunch; this is a service that won’t cost operators a penny. In addition to helping operators and drivers organise a visit to Devon’s capital city, the city’s tourism professionals can also point callers in the direction of the towns worth visiting and the attractions likely to appeal in the surrounding area.
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So, what’s on offer to coach operators at Visit Exeter? The most helpful service they offer is via their group booking service. For the busy operator, this can be a one stop shop offering detailed itineraries subject to how long a group will be in the city, what their interests are and what they fancy doing. This could all be dealt with by looking at their website, but Visit Exeter is more than happy to offer the personal touch via a telephone call as they feel that talking to someone like Debbie can bring the city to life. Operators might also run into and be able to talk to Debbie face to face when Exeter sets out its stall at group travel trade shows. She recently attended the South West Group Travel Trade Show at Longleat in conjunction with the Devon Association of Tourist Attractions. She is also a regular at shows like the British Tourism and Travel Show.
So why do places like Exeter go to all this trouble? Debbie will confirm what any coach operator and tour driver sees with their own eyes every time they drop off passengers in the centre of a historic city – they spend money. During the city’s peak periods for coach visitors in the summer and in the run up to Christmas, the passengers on 214 coach parties a month were flashing the plastic in Devon’s capital. Though no precise figures were available, that will amount to tens of thousands of pounds of disposable income being disposed of in the city. That’s why they go to all that trouble. Because when it comes to coach operators, they’re well worth it.
Events, dear boy, events
Former Prime Minister Harold Macmillan once said that it was ‘Events dear boy, events’ that were likely to cause him problems. Not for coach operators. They can transform an ordinary visit into well, a bit of an event if the place they’re visiting has something special going on that will appeal to their passengers. Street markets are a case in point. Christmas markets in particular go down like the mulled wine on offer, very well. However, lots of people in the coach trade will no doubt say that they’ve been to a place like Exeter loads of times. Fair enough, but the next time they’re visiting, do they actually know what’s going on? If they don’t check, how can they be sure?
For those who have never visited a destination on their itinerary before, it never ceases to surprise me how many tour drivers set off on an excursion knowing little or nothing about the place/s they’re visiting. That’s not just the history, the culture or if any special events are taking place on, but the basics like where to drop off and where to park. A quick call from a tour driver to bodies like Visit Exeter can provide all the information needed to ensure an excursion offers the best day out to everyone on their coach. For example, when I was preparing this article, having made an appointment to visit her office, Debbie Lewis emailed me all the information about the city the average operator/tour driver would need to know. In minutes I had at my fingertips comprehensive yet clear information that would have vastly improved a visit to the city. Entitled ‘Exeter with Ease – group booking service,’ the briefing sheets supplied would equip the average tour driver with the facts and figures that would allow them to sound like they’d been going to the city for years. At a time when some operators are having to work hard to attract and retain passengers, and new passengers at that, then ensuring drivers look like they’re operating professional tours rather than a local bus service is vital. Calling the tourism professionals at organisations such as Visit Exeter could really hone the edge of any included excursion. Like many cities in the UK, Exeter’s history goes back 2,000 years, yet if you listen to what some tour drivers tell their passengers you would think that the only thing that has ever happened in the city has been shopping. For some visitors that may be the case, and for sure, Exeter is a great place to shop. When it was known as Isca Dumnoniorum, no doubt the well-dressed Roman looking for a new toga would have headed to the centre of the walled city to get kitted out. While togas are no longer fashionable, the wall is still there. But the info provided by people like Debbie and her colleagues about the city’s role in the Roman Empire enables operators to offer an interesting choice for all the members of a group when they visit such a historic city. So when it comes to planning a visit that will coincide with one of the many things on offer that local authorities organise to attract visitors, a quick call is all it takes. Debbie will usually know what is planned in the city up to six months ahead of an event.
Anybody hungry?
Overall, a memorable visit just takes a bit of planning. Not a lot. 10 minutes is all it took me to get a few ideas that would appeal to a broad range of people. Take food for example. Pretty basic really. We all have to eat, after all. But from what I see food festivals are very and increasingly popular. Lots of places throughout the land are now holding outdoor food festivals in public spaces of one sort or another as a showcase for the agricultural produce from their rural hinterlands. Throw in a celebrity chef like Michael Caines who attended a recent food festival in Exeter to add a bit of prestige and you’ve got a tasty event for passengers to savour. A call to the local tourist body can help you find out what’s coming up on the outdoor menu. And, a food festival could save tour drivers having to worry about finding somewhere for their passengers to eat. There are always lots of free samples on offer at events like that which the canny passenger can use to ensure they don’t faint from malnutrition if they’re on a tight budget. Also, ‘Foodies’ like to spend their money trying out not just the local food festivals but also the local restaurants; and they like to have a drink too. That means they can’t drive…taking a step further, bodies like Visit Exeter could make suggestions about local food producers, brewers and wineries in the surrounding area that welcome groups. In addition, there will be lively events on offer in cities throughout the land like the Exeter Craft Market, the Exeter Festival, a music festival in the city centred in Northernhay Gardens, not to mention garden festivals at places like Powderham Castle, a short drive from the centre.
Advice about hotels is, if you like, the bread and butter of what tourist bodies can help with. In addition, information about guides, museums, cathedrals, and other historic buildings is all on offer.
Many operators do call Debbie though, a common query being where to drop off and park. This is useful in a city that is undergoing redevelopment as it enables the tourism professionals to keep visiting tour drivers up to date with road closures and changes to the direction of traffic flow. Where a city has changed the parking facilities for coach parties, no one wants coaches driving aimlessly round a city centre; that will include passengers, drivers, operators and the people of Exeter.
Another good reason for actually calling for information is that people like Debbie will love and live in or near to the destinations they are promoting. In addition, they will have actually visited the attractions and historic buildings they will be telling operators about. When I was talking to Debbie, she confirmed what I had heard about the rooftop visits that are available at Exeter Cathedral and the stunning views from one of the highest points in the city. She also told me about her visit to Exeter’s Underground Passages that were used to bring fresh water to the city. While it’s a job with a few ups and downs, operators can be sure that they’re getting hands on good advice. Debbie has also visited the food and drink festivals. She likes those! And so will visiting groups. Her advice is based on personal experience.
In fact, as all this stuff is online, does anyone ever suggest to their passengers that they link up with the info available about a place they’re heading to so they can make up their own minds what they want to do when they arrive?
I don’t think that should be a substitute for a well briefed tour driver, just another option for those who are a bit savvy when it comes to using online information from tourist bodies.
Spice up your brochure
Getting some fresh and up to date ideas from the tourist body in the area an operator is visiting could enable them to add something with a bit of spice to the info in their brochure. For example: ‘And on day one, our visit to the historic city of Exeter coincides with an exciting event in the city’s social calandar. In the shadow of the city’s ancient cathedral, you will have the chance to visit the Exeter Food & Drink Festival taking place in Cathedral Close.
Overlooked by the coffee shop where Sir Walter Raleigh used to dine, you will have the chance to savour a wide variety of foodstuffs from stall holders who use the very tasty produce of the local area to delight the palette of hungry visitor.’
In addition to helping to put some lively pep into a brochure, somebody like Debbie would be more than willing to provide operators with suitable photos to illustrate their promotional material. In addition to standard photographs of the city, photos can also be supplied which illustrate specific events. To further illustrate that point, most of the photos used to accompany this article were supplied by Visit Exeter. That is the sort of service you can expect from similar tourist bodies.
An organisation like Debbie’s will be planning or keeping tabs on upcoming events many months in advance so by keeping in touch with her department, fresh ideas could easily be integrated into brochure, to spice up late offers and fill empty seats. In addition, a quick call or a peek at the websites of local tourism bodies can enhance any visit by having up to date information at a driver’s fingertips on the eve of a visit. Therefore, it pays to keep in touch so that everyone keeps their fingers on the local pulse.
Bodies like Visit Exeter exist throughout the land and are a valuable resource to offer imaginative ideas and ideas that could well appeal to existing passengers and to a broader range of people – and who would complain at that?
It’s easy to take a place for granted. Keeping up to date about what’s going on could vastly improve an excursion for groups and make a visit to a place they have been to many times before that bit different. And make them want to keep coming back for more.
