UK’s oldest cities launch campaign aimed at U.S. travelers
Fifteen of the UK’s oldest cities, including London and York, have come together for the first time in a joint promotion aimed at the U.S. market.
Five new, hassle-free, easy-to-book itineraries are being marketed under a new brand: England Originals from England’s Historic Cities.
Available as holiday packages or as build-your-own-itineraries for independent travelers, the tours can be booked through a new England Originals website,
Aimed at the younger U.S. visitor (aged 18 – 39) the tours will enable customers to experience England close-up as they hop on and off the train, straight into the heart of the cities, during each of the five multi-destination trips.
Each tour will include historic stories, fun facts and amazingly instagrammable locations such as York Minster, pictured below.
Melanie Sensicle, chair, England’s Historic Cities, a marketing consortium, said: "England has a diverse history and these new tours are sure to capture the imagination of U.S. visitors. Our use of story-telling and augmented reality gives a fresh, new perspective on our history, which we’re excited to share."
The historic city of York is offering one tour. Via the England’s Historic Cities mobile phone app, U.S. visitors can explore York prior to arrival with a 3D model of the city. By hovering over a particular attraction, the user can hear stories and facts about it.
Once visitors arrive into York, GPS technology at five of York’s top attractions will showcase a 360-degree video including views from the Chapter House at York Minster and Dick Turpin’s Cell at York Castle Museum.
The four other England Original tours are: Thinkers and Writers Tour, which visits Oxford Worcester and Stratford Upon Avon; the Time Travellers Tour, which visits Greenwich, Canterbury and Cambridge; the Wall to Wall Tour, which visits Chester, Lancaster and Carlisle; and the Western Wonders Tour, which visits Truro, Bath and Salisbury. It’s also possible to combine the tours, allowing customers to visit numerous cities.
"By targeting a young audience in the U.S we’re aiming to increase the number of independent travellers to the UK’s top historic cities," said Michelle Brown, marketing manager, Visit York.
"It’s fantastic to see York being brought to life in the States through new technology. This is the first time we have worked together with England’s historic cities to put together tours for the American visitor that are really easy to book. By joining together we will can maximise our marketing to showcase York’s history and heritage to new audiences."
England Originals from England’s Historic Cities is one of a number of projects to benefit from funding from the UK Government’s £40 million Discover England Fund.
The Fund is administered by VisitEngland and involves a programme of activity to ensure that England stays competitive in the rapidly growing global tourism industry, by offering world-class English tourism products to the right customers at the right time.
Lisa
Lisa joined Travel Weekly nearly 25 years ago as technology reporter and then sailed around the world for a couple of years as cruise correspondent, before becoming deputy editor. Now freelance, Lisa writes for various print and web publications, edits Corporate Traveller’s client magazine, Gateway, and works on the acclaimed Remembering Wildlife series of photography books, which raise awareness of nature’s most at-risk species and helps to fund their protection.
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