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Bournemouth Facts

• 6.88m visitors to Bournemouth per year

The Economic Impact of Bournemouth’s Visitor Economy 2015 – The South West Research Company:

• 1,009,000 Staying visitor trips• 4,038,000 Staying visitor nights• £287,521,000 Staying visitor spend• 5,798,000 Day visits• £213,071,000 Day visitor spend• £500,592,000 Direct visitor spend• £15,647,000 Other related spend• £516,239,000 TOTAL VISITOR RELATED SPEND• 11,779 Estimated actual employment• 8,614 FTE employment• 12% Proportion of all employment24/05/2023• 13,868 Bed spaces (hotels, guest accommodation & B&B)• 329 Self-catering units

Fun facts:

• Bournemouth experiences 7.7 hours of summer sunshine a day• Ice creams sold on a busy weekend - approx 30,000• Every year an average 750,000 ice creams are bought on the seven miles of

Bournemouth seafront• Deckchairs hired out on a busy weekend - 3,000• In the summer the beaches are raked by the tractors every morning and

manually litter picked twice a day• Bournemouth Pier has the world’s first and only pier-to-shore zipline• Bournemouth Mayor Merton Russell-Cotes is said to have received his

knighthood for his discretion when King Edward VII regularly visited the Russell-Cotes with his famous mistress, Lily Langtry

• Bournemouth was the first place in the UK to have purpose-built beach huts, built in 1909 and marked with a blue plaque near to the east of Bournemouth Pier

• Bournemouth’s renowned beach has four Blue Flags – Durley Chine has held the accolade for every one of the 30 years since the scheme’s inception

• Fisherman’s Walk Cliff Lift in Southbourne made it into the 2015 Guinness World Records as the world’s shortest funicular railway

Awards:

2017

Group Travel Awards 2017 – finalist

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Blue Flag beaches: Alum Chine, Durley Chine, Fisherman’s Walk and Southbourne

Seaside Awards: Bournemouth Beach and Boscombe Beach British Coach Tourism Awards 2017 – Coach Friendly Destination Finalist

2016

Beach Hut Local Authority of the Year 2016 Blue Flag beaches: Alum Chine, Durley Chine, Fisherman’s Walk and

Southbourne Seaside Awards: Bournemouth Beach and Boscombe Beach 2016 Quality Coast Award Green Flag locations: Lower, Central Upper Gardens, Alum Chime, Seafield

Gardens, Winton Recreation Ground, Redhill Park & Common, Pelhams Park, Moore Ave, Boscombe Gardens, Stour Valley Nature Reserve, Fishermans Walk, Kinson Common, Hengistbury Head (+ Green Heritage Flag), Springbourne Gardens, Slades Farm Playing Fields, Queens Park Golf Course, Tuckton Tea Gardens, Strouden (North) Cemetery

Purple Flag Award 2016 Group Travel Awards – runner-up South West Tourism Awards – Tourism Information Service of the Year 2015/16

Silver ‘Coach Friendly Town’ – Confederation of Passenger Transport UK (CPT)

2015

Silver Travel Awards – Best Town in the UK Finalist 2015 National Coach Tourism Awards – Coach Friendly Destination 2015 Finalist Group Travel Awards – Best UK Destination for groups 2015 Runner Up Visit England Awards for Excellence – Tourism Event of the Year (Bournemouth

Air Festival) 2015 Gold Dorset Tourism Awards – Tourist Information Service of the Year 2015 Gold &

Unsung Hero for Outstanding Customer Service 2015 Gold Primary Times Dorset Reader Star Awards 2015 – Best Event this Year

(Bournemouth Air Festival) 2015 British Travel Awards – Best UK Coastal Resort Silver 2015

2014

National PR Golden Hedgehog Awards – Public Sector Campaign of the Year 2014

The Travel Marketing Awards – Digital Marketing Campaign of the Year 2014 European Airshow Council Marketing Award 2014 British Travel Awards – Best UK Coastal Resort Gold 2014 Dorset Tourism Awards – Event of the Year (Bournemouth Air Festival) 2014 Group Travel Awards – Best UK Destination for groups 2014 Runner Up European Entente Florale – Gold 2014

2013

British Destination Awards – Best Brochure Front Cover of the Year 2013Last updated: 24/05/2023

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British Travel Awards – Best UK Coastal Resort Gold 2013

2012

Trip Advisor Travellers Choice Awards – Best Beach in the UK 2012

2011

South West Tourism Awards Silver Award – Best Event (Bournemouth Air Festival) 2011

European Airshow Council Marketing Award 2011 Green Apple Environmental Awards for Bournemouth Air Festival 2011

Please contact Bournemouth Tourism PR office for more informationpr@bournemouth.gov.uk or call 01202 451750

Last updated: 24/05/2023