London in £5m bid to lure back Americans
London tourism chiefs plan a “heavy-weight” promotional campaign to attract American tourists back to the capital.
Almost £5 million has been earmarked for the marketing and public relations push, which needs to overcome the perception that the capital is too expensive for US visitors.
The Visit London initiative follows research which showed a pent up desire by Americans to travel and “overwhelmingly positive” reactions to London. The city faced a tough time in 2002 and 2003 following the September 11 terrorist attacks while this year is seen as a period of receovery.
The promotional push in the US for 2004-05 comes as US visitors to London rose by 10% in the first quarter of 2004 over the same period last year.
Visit London chief executive David Campbell said: “We think this is the right time for a targeted heavy-weight campaign in the States. We know that Americans love coming to London, we just need to give them a reason to travel.
“One of our challenges is to convince visitors that it’s not going to break the bank to come to London, that there are plenty of great value deals and options.”
Partners in the push include British Airways, Marriott and Radisson Edwardian.
Report by Phil Davies
Phil Davies
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