Suffolk & Norfolk Destination Management Plan

It’s all in our plan Naturall y

Suffolk and Norfolk Destination Management Plan 2024-2029

By 2029 Norfolk and Suffolk will be a top-of-mind UK tourism destination

Great Yarmouth

Norwich

Foreword

Suffolk and Norfolk achieved Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP) accreditation in July of 2024 and this Destination Management Plan (DMP) is the roadmap that will steer our collective work over the coming years.

The DMP has been completed after eight months of rigorous consultation with stakeholders, including more than forty face-to-face interviews, five workshops across the two counties and two separate questionnaires. It has engaged local destination organisations, local authorities, BIDs and businesses.

The DMP helps forge a strong partnership ethic that will see us working together to further develop Suffolk and Norfolk’s successful visitor economy.

It should be stressed that although Visit East of England operates the accredited LVEP, its fingerprints are not on the DMP. This document has been produced in consultation with the stakeholders, and it is our job at VEE to work collaboratively to implement its objectives and ambitions.

By Dr Andy Wood, OBE Chairman, Visit East of England

Crucially, this DMP amplifies and reinforces the work of local destination organisations but also sets out an exciting and potentially transformative agenda that all stakeholders can get behind. It creates a clear role and purpose for Visit East of England.

The DMP also gives us a framework for working and a five-year schedule but it is not planned to be set in aspic. Rather, it is intended to be adaptable and VEE will ensure a constant dialogue with stakeholders to ensure the DMP remains relevant and focused on what the sector wants.

Visit East of England looks forward to working with all the partners to help achieve the DMP’s goals and aims.

Foreword

As the national tourism board for England, we are pleased to endorse this Destination Management Plan for Suffolk and Norfolk.

Great destinations are great places to live and work as well as to visit and strong governance can drive place-shaping and shift local and wider perceptions of the place, which can contribute to local pride. Well run destinations can also attract new investment, increase income and create new jobs.

We were delighted to award Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP) status to Visit East of England, on behalf of Suffolk and Norfolk, in 2024. Since then, the LVEP has worked closely with public sector and industry partners and consulted widely across the destination to create this first combined Destination Management Plan for the two counties. It sets out a vision for the visitor economy with four priority aims of raising awareness, developing its rich and natural product, supporting resilient and engaged businesses, and effective destination management. The plan builds

By Andrew Stokes OBE England Director, VisitEngland

on earlier destination-wide commitments and provides a strong basis for the LVEP to continue to lead the development, management and marketing across Norfolk and Suffolk.

A key recommendation of the Government response to the de Bois Review of Destination Management Organisations (DMOs) in England was the creation of the LVEP programme. The LVEPs work closely with us at VisitEngland and are at the heart of transforming the visitor economy landscape supporting its cohesion and growth in a more inclusive, accessible and sustainable way. The programme is going from strength to strength as the number of LVEPs increases, representing more of England

At VisitEngland, we look forward to working with the Suffolk and Norfolk LVEP and their partners to help realise the ambitions set out in this plan.

Executive Summary

This is an exciting time for Suffolk and Norfolk. Visit East of England (VEE) has been confirmed by VisitEngland as the official Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP) for the area transforming the way in which we will work. The public sector has recently committed long-term increases in funding for the visitor economy and the area is well placed to take advantage of market trends, with outdoor activity a growing part of our lives, and culture and heritage of increasing appeal.

Framlingham Castle

This plan focuses on the priorities and associated actions which will enable us to become a top-ofmind destination.

Beneath our big skies we have outstanding landscapes and unique natural assets including our wildlife and waterways; more than 130 miles of varied coastline; internationally significant heritage and history; and an excellent cultural and arts offer as strong as anywhere in the country. These assets attract approximately 88.7 million visitors a year who spend £5.7bn in the area and support 83,200 Full Time Job Equivalents (FTEs). We appeal to a broad range of markets and have the potential to increase our market share, both nationally and internationally.

This Destination Management Plan (DMP) provides a galvanising framework for Norfolk and Suffolk to move forward together, building on our collective and individual strengths. This plan focuses on the priorities and associated actions which will enable us to become a top-of-mind destination, supporting profitable and growing businesses and providing a sustainable and inclusive welcome for all underpinned by our Naturally brand.

Sutton Hoo

© National Trust Images / James Beck

Our Visitor Economy

Our Strengths

We have considerable strengths: these include our landscape, natural environment and waterways; our strong heritage assets; our cultural assets; our well-established destinations; a varied and independent business base: our brand, Naturally, from which we can build on positive perceptions; our relative proximity to key markets and an established DMO network.

Our Challenges

Our challenges include: external connectivity in terms of rail and road links and internal connectivity in terms of poor public transport; seasonality; a limited overseas market; pressures on some honeypot sites and a lack of geographical spread inland; the level of resourcing for some DMOs and the potential for duplication; staff recruitment and retention and competition from other destinations. Sizewell C presents a challenge in terms of perception, construction disruption, pressures on the local labour force and competing demand for accommodation and an opportunity in terms of mitigation funding.

Welney Wetland Centre

Burgh Castle

Our Opportunities

Amongst our exciting opportunities are: The creation of the new LVEP to strengthen our DMO network and improve delivery; the development of our Naturally placemaking brand to position ourselves as the destination for sustainable tourism; strengthened product themes around outdoor and activity tourism as well as arts, culture and events; potential investment projects; the development of World War II Heritage sites; further investment in the Head East cultural campaign; the work of the VENI project for further development in skills and recruitment; and the development of a more intelligence-led approach.

Ipswich

Jimmy’s Farm, Wherstead

© VisitBritain / Emma Wilkinson

By 2029 Norfolk and Suffolk will be a top-of-mind UK tourism destination, Naturally.

Cley Marshes © Norfolk Coast Partnership / Chris Taylor

Our Vision

Our outstanding built and natural environments, culture and heritage, will attract UK and overseas visitors throughout the year, sustaining profitable and growing businesses with welcoming, committed staff. From family fun and groups to Free Independent Travellers, we will provide a sustainable and inclusive welcome for all.

We hope to achieve our vision by the end of the five years of this Destination Management Plan. Our vision ensures that our visitor economy is sustainable, both socially and economically, and protects and enhances our assets. We will also provide an inclusive welcome to all our visitors and ensure that no one is excluded from visiting Norfolk and Suffolk. Building on our natural environments, culture and heritage we will look to create a year-round economy, providing higher quality jobs for local people and more profitable businesses.

Our Aims and Priorities

Underpinning our overarching vision, this Destination Management Plan has three primary aims to be achieved through the delivery of four priorities, over the next five years.

Aims

3 1 2

Grow the value of the visitor economy in a sustainable and responsible way, providing careers for local people and supporting local employment.

Spread the benefits of tourism as wide as possible, seasonally and geographically, to the benefit of all.

Manage our destination effectively, with productive partnerships, clear roles and responsibilities and an engaged private sector.

Priorities

1

Raise Awareness

Focussing on our advocacy work with regional and national stakeholders, highlighting key issues, promotional activity/ campaigns, raising awareness of our outstanding products and experiences with target markets.

2

Develop our Rich and Natural Product

Covering foundation activities such as high quality environments, plus developing new products and experiences, cross-geography itineraries and themes.

River Bure, Broads

Snape Maltings

3

Support Resilient and Engaged Businesses

Detailing our actions to support businesses to become more profitable, resilient, sustainable and inclusive working with national partners.

4

Effective Destination Management

Outlining our new management and engagement approach to destination management and partnerships as well as digital infrastructure development.

Blakeney Point

Lavenham

Our Action Priority 1 Our Action Priority 2

Raising Awareness

Promoting our offer to our target markets is a key priority for our stakeholders. Our local DMOs will be responsible for destination level and placebased marketing to UK consumers. Similarly, our attractions, local authorities, BIDs and other consortia are best placed to market to day visitors and residents.

At a wider level, we will develop a small number of targeted projects which will promote key product themes; target markets beyond the resources of individual DMOs and encourage visitors to experience multiple areas of Norfolk and Suffolk.

We will reinforce and widen the adoption of our successful Naturally brand across all channels and markets to promote sustainable and regenerative tourism, low impact activities, relaxation, wellness and personal enrichment, promoting these throughout the seasons.

We will ensure an integrated customer journey, keeping our digital assets under review.

The success of these awareness raising actions will be monitored in an annual perceptions study to ensure that Norfolk and Suffolk are a top-of-mind destination and perform well in comparison with our competitors.

Developing our Rich and Natural Product

The places our visitors enjoy (products) and the activities they undertake (experiences) are at the heart of our visitor economy. Developing products and experiences has a key role to play in reducing seasonality and creating better careers. Our natural spectaculars and some major events already take place outside of the summer season and we will explore further events and activities and consider the opportunities for a major indoor events venue. Our cultural offer can also play a significant role in extending the season. We will work with cultural partners to identify the opportunities for enhancing or creating new cultural content (exhibitions, festivals, etc) with a focus on the shoulder seasons.

Our natural environment can also be developed further. Signature projects will build on the opportunities to enjoy active travel and maximise the assets of our extensive waterways while The Brecks initiative, which covers both Suffolk and Norfolk, provides an opportunity to work collaboratively across the two counties to develop an exemplar regenerative tourism National Character Area. Our cultural offer will be enhanced by the St Olav Ways signature project, creating a new Cultural Pilgrimage Route of the Council of Europe that takes visitors from Great Yarmouth to King’s Lynn via Bury St Edmunds.

Our Action Priority 3

Supporting Resilient and Engaged Businesses

Ensuring that there is a cohort of profitable, resilient and engaged businesses will be a key priority moving forward. Activities at destination level can include developing content for marketing campaigns and providing a forum and channel to update businesses on news and new initiatives. We will work with our network of local DMOs to engage the sector raising awareness of trends in the marketplace and important national initiatives. We will prioritise a Welcome for All through our access and inclusion activities.

We will continue to deliver our successful VENI project, led by the five FE colleges, with its innovative Skills Academy Apprenticeship, and explore opportunities for our businesses to deepen links with local education providers through the Local Skills Improvement Plan. The VENI Partnership will also deliver our World Host Training signature project to enhance customer service.

Our businesses require timely and relevant data in order to inform decisions. We currently monitor annual volume and value consistently across the whole of Norfolk and Suffolk. As well as looking at our own situation, we will approach and work with VisitEngland and the new LVEP structure on a new national structure of market intelligence gathering.

Our Action Priority 4

Effective Destination Management

We will transform our engagement structure, with a clear hierarchy and demarcation of responsibilities. This will ensure that businesses know who does what. As a consequence, consumer facing roles will also be clearer. Whilst we are confident that the new structure will bring significant benefits, we will keep the situation under review on an annual basis. We will work with local partners to establish a clear split of responsibilities, setting out a proactive approach to engaging with the local media and decision makers to maximise benefits for our sector. We will also ensure that the environmental interests of our area are represented in our networks and governance structures.

Foundation activities within this priority include the important work of our DMOs supporting their members (meetings, e-communications, etc), communication on local developments and statutory obligations from the local authorities. Partnership is a key principle of this plan. Destination management arrangements will evolve as the new delivery arrangements develop and the designation of Visit East of England as a VisitEngland LVEP matures. One example is a new destination content management system in development with Destination Core that will link five new websites – VEE, Visit Norfolk, Visit Suffolk, VEE business and VEE travel trade – and facilitate work across various strands.

Our Signature Projects

The Action Priorities will be delivered through development projects and signature projects, identified as those which present the first major opportunities.

Signature Projects Priority

Raise Awareness

Develop our Rich and Natural Product

Support Resilient and Engaged Businesses

Effective Destination Management

Out of Season Campaigns

Perception Study

Active Norfolk Suffolk

Brecks Regenerative Tourism National Character Area

Cross border St Olav Ways Pilgrimage Route

A Welcome for All, Naturally

World Host training

Sizewell C mitigation

New management and engagement approach

Digital infrastructure development

Dunwich Heath © RSPB Minsmere

Implementation

The LVEP Board will provide the oversight and advisory function for the LVEP. It will be supported by a DMP/Operational Group which will retain oversight of the DMP and the work of four subgroups, taking responsibility for the ‘Effective Destination Management’ priority action. Whilst exact composition is to be established, the four subgroup chairs will help oversee implementation. The subgroups themselves will be responsible for the following action priorities of the DMP as follows:

Raise Awareness – DMO Coalition

Develop our Rich and Natural Product –Naturally Group and other stakeholders

Support Resilient and Engaged Businesses –Skills and Business Engagement Group

The Naturally Group will focus on the regenerative and sustainable tourism initiative to ensure that environmental and social responsibility is embedded across all workstreams.

The Visit Suffolk and Visit Norfolk Groups (composed of both DMOs and local authorities) will exist outside of the formal LVEP structure, delivering key campaigns and marketing content individually and will come together as the DMO coalition to consider joint opportunities, working with VEE as the LVEP delivery body.

BeWILDerwood

Blackshore Harbour, Southwold

©James Rouse Photography

Our Destination Management Plan –

In Detail

1 | Introduction

This is an exciting time for Norfolk and Suffolk. Visit East of England (VEE) has been confirmed by Visit England as the official Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP) for the area. The public sector has recently committed long-term increases in funding for the visitor economy and the area is well placed to take advantage of market trends, with outdoor activity a growing part of our lives, and culture and heritage of increasing appeal.

Felixstowe

Our Core Proposition

We are a diverse destination with unique landscapes, outstanding heritage/culture and distinctive food and drink. Our big skies and space are underpinned by a warm welcome on the ground for families and others seeking fun and adventure. We deserve to be better known.

Snape Maltings © Sam Murray-Sutton

We have outstanding natural landscapes, more than 130 miles of varied coastline, heritage and history as strong as anywhere in the country, and an excellent cultural offer. We appeal to a broad range of markets and have the potential to increase our market share, both nationally and internationally. To summarise our offer we have developed a core proposition.

This Destination Management Plan (DMP) sets out how VEE and its partners will take advantage of this positive situation, working together to address the challenges we face and making the most of our opportunities.

The DMP is the result of extensive consultation with partners. Key elements have included:

48 one to one consultation meetings

Two online surveys with over 200 responses

Five workshops across Norfolk and Suffolk

The views of all these stakeholders have been taken into account in developing the DMP. This DMP does not just belong to Visit East of England, it belongs to everyone involved in the visitor economy across Norfolk and Suffolk.

Norfolk & Norwich Festival

Christchurch Park, Ipswich

Ickworth Estate

©National Trust Images / Arnhel de Serra

2 | Our Strategic and Market Context

This DMP sits within a range of national, regional and local strategies. It builds on the Visit East of England Destination Plan 2022 and recognises the new environment created by the DeBois Review and its recommendations for a new destination management hierarchy in England, including the fundamental building block of supported, strategic Local Visitor Economy Partnerships (LVEPs). These LVEPs will provide local leadership and governance in their destinations.

2.1 | Strategy and Policy

A review of more than twenty local strategic documents (see Appendix 1 for details) identified the following areas of common interest across both Norfolk and Suffolk:

Regenerative and sustainable tourism and sustainable growth.

Environmental responsibility, conservation and environmental management.

Spreading the benefits (and impacts) of tourism geographically and seasonally.

Accessibility, removing barriers to participation as a customer or as an employee within the tourism and cultural sectors.

The need to address issues around skills and the workforce: recruitment, access to work, retention and skills.

Retaining young people in the region, repositioning the visitor economy as a sought-after career.

Building on partnerships, encouraging greater involvement and engagement from the private sector with stronger networks.

Development of the cultural and arts sector.

Community wellbeing, health and resilience.

Smarter use of technology for marketing and information purposes.

Great Yarmouth Hippodrome

2.2 | Market Context (Trends)

A range of recent and post-Covid trends that impact on the visitor economy can be identified:

Financial pressures and cost of living crisis are creating uncertainty amongst consumers.

Inbound travel appears to be recovering more quickly than domestic tourism, largely driven by North American visitors (although there are recent signs this is plateauing).

Visiting Friends and Relatives, multi-generational travel and celebrations are increasing in volume and value.

Sustainability is becoming more of a factor in decision making.

Outdoors, Wellness and Relaxation are an increasing motivation for holidays and visits.

Workforce issues (recruitment and retention) are inhibiting growth and recovery.

Inflationary pressures on the sector are increasing costs and squeezing margins, reducing profitability.

Longer term trends include

Increasing choice of destinations across the globe and subsequent competition for visitors.

Connectivity – ease of travel is a significant factor in consumer decisions.

Travellers are becoming older, people are living and staying active for longer. Growth is expected to come from the 55+ plus age group.

Visitors are tech-enabled and research in advance to reduce the risks of having poor experiences.

Accessibility – there is an expectation that destinations and business will be fully accessible to all.

‘Box Office’ – high end or impact experiences and events that are shareable on social media are increasingly important and less vulnerable to market downturns.

Aldeburgh Broads National Park

3 | Our Destination Status

Norwich

3.1 | Our Product Offer

We are blessed with outstanding tourism products, from the undisturbed nature of our protected coastal landscapes, nature reserves and rural hinterland, to the thriving resort of Great Yarmouth. The countryside itself is attractive and crossed by footpaths and cycleways. Our built heritage is equally outstanding, with the mediaeval treasures of Norwich and Bury St. Edmunds complemented by historic houses, internationally known prehistoric sites and even a royal presence. We have a range of festivals and events, including Latitude, the Aldeburgh Festival and more locally driven festivals such as First Light and Brighten the Corners. Newmarket is a global centre for horse racing. There is an outstanding collection of tourist attractions and our smaller coastal towns and villages are some of the most attractive and popular in the country. Our locally owned and high quality businesses, accommodation, restaurants and pubs are a distinctive part of our overall offer, supported by high quality local food and drink producers.

There is potential to strengthen our product offer with further investment in key capital projects; strengthening product themes particularly those which help spread visits seasonally and geographically; developing our local food and drink offer as a USP for the region and encouraging low impact activities which reinforce our aspirations to be a sustainable destination.

Cromer

/ Hannah Argyle

Full Time Job Equivalents (FTEs) directly supported* Our Visitor Economy

88.7million visitors*

Our Visitor Spend in the area £5.7bn 83,200

Norfolk gets 62% of all spend Suffolk gets 38% of all spend

Norwich gets 17% of day spend / East Suffolk 14%

8,000 caravan pitches

Great Yarmouth gets 24% of all staying spend

North Norfolk & East

17.4m 4.5m bed nights 14k serviced rooms 17.5k non-serviced units staying visitors

Suffolk have 13% each

Strong domestic demand, especially for holidays

60% of our domestic trips are on holiday (45% for England)

8% of our visitors are international (27% for England) 4% of our holiday trips are international (25% for England)

Our key international markets are the USA, Germany, France and the Netherlands

3.3 | Our Accommodation and Attractions –Supply and Performance

Appendix 2 (see page 77) provides an overview of accommodation supply across Norfolk and Suffolk in some detail. This is based on multiple sources and highlights that across Norfolk and Suffolk there are nearly 14,000 serviced rooms, 8,000 caravan and camping pitches, and 17,500 non-serviced units.

The majority of supply is in Norfolk, particularly caravan and camping (83% of pitches) but also serviced (61% of rooms) and non-serviced (64% of units).

There are significant concentrations of:

Serviced rooms in Norwich (17% of the area’s supply), East Suffolk (14%), North Norfolk and Yarmouth (both 11%), and West Suffolk (10%)

Caravan and camping pitches in Great Yarmouth (32%), North Norfolk (25%), East Suffolk (13%) and King’s Lynn and West Norfolk and Breckland (both 12%)

Non-serviced units in East Suffolk (24%), Norwich (20%), North Norfolk (18%), King’s Lynn and West Norfolk (13%).

Attractions are a real strength, with concentrations of family and heritage attractions – Appendix 3 provides some detail on visits to individual attractions. The following chart shows a trend for visits to attractions from 2017. It is based on attractions (with more than 5,000 visitors per annum) who provided consistent data to VisitEngland’s self-selecting ‘Visit to Attractions’ survey from 2017 to 2022. The chart highlights recovery since 2020 with 2022 visits almost back to pre-Covid levels.

Visits to Attractions

2017–2022 trend (2017 = 100):

Source: Visit to Attractions (VisitEngland 2023)

3.4 | Our Current and Target Markets

Differentiating characteristics of the market for Suffolk and Norfolk are:

More people on holiday

Holidays account for 60% of all trips to Norfolk & Suffolk versus 45% for England

More visitors from the UK 95%-97% of our visitors are domestic, 75% for England

Fewer international visitors on holiday 19% of all trips versus 38% nationally

Great Yarmouth

© David Kirkham

Target Markets

Working within VisitEngland’s Project Lion segments we have identified a hierarchy of markets. With such a diverse destination, our appeal is broad. Nevertheless, we need to target our resources and efforts to make the most impact. Moving forward we will focus on one key and two growth segments. Maintenance markets are important to us, and will not be forgotten in our efforts, but it will be more appropriate for some local DMOs to tailor their messages to those segments.

Market Segment (and size) Description

Key Segment

Country Loving

We will continue to roll out our successful Naturally brand across all markets and channels and look to secure further funding for the Arts & Culture Head East campaign plus international campaigns. The table below describes the segments. More detail on how our products and experiences fit these segments can be found in Appendix 4 (see page 82).

Empty nesters with traditional values that take countryside breaks. Traditionalists (30%) Good quality, secure accommodation is a priority

Growth Segments

Free and Easy

More likely than other segments to be ‘young, free and single’. Mini Breakers (26%)

Overseas Markets

Niche / Special Interest

Maintenance Segments

Fun in the Sun (20%)

Demographically close to ‘the average Joe’

North American and near European visitors, with an interest in our (shared) heritage and quintessential Englishness

Niche and special interest categories that apply to Norfolk and Suffolk could include pilgrimage tourism, WWII heritage tours, churches and Deep History

Parents looking for family orientated summer holidays where beaches play a starring role. Tend to seek cheaper, more social alternatives to hotel accommodation, such as caravans or holiday camps

Fuss Free Value

Empty nesters on a budget, they seek good value beach holidays with Seekers (11%) convenient transport links (they are more likely to travel by public transport). Tend to be less digitally active than other segments

3.5 | Our Strengths

Landscape, natural environment and waterways are a unique asset for us – reflected in our protected landscapes (the Broads National Park; Norfolk Coast, Suffolk Coast and Heaths, and Dedham Vale National Landscapes). In addition, there is a significant concentration of nature reserves and sites (eg RSPB Minsmere, Titchwell Marsh and Lakenheath Fen, Cley Marshes Nature Reserve and Blakeney Point).

Allied to this we have strong heritage assets including Norwich and its castle development, cathedral and UNESCO status as City of Literature, Sandringham and Royal connections, Bury St Edmunds, the Suffolk medieval wool towns, sites of historical significance such as Sutton Hoo and a number of National Trust and English Heritage properties.

Cultural assets include Constable Country, the strong offer in Norwich and arts portfolio in Ipswich, with Great Yarmouth developing this as a key part of their offer. There is also a popular programme of music, performance and festivals such as Latitude, Out There and First Light.

We have a number of well-established destinations with a high profile and different market positioning – a rural/coastal product, seaside and historic town/city. These include Southwold, Aldeburgh and the Suffolk Coast, Cromer and North Norfolk, Norwich and Great Yarmouth.

A varied and independent business base with a significant bedstock and a number of attractions of varying sizes and market appeal.

The Naturally Brand and a good base of perceptions to build on.

Our (relative) proximity to key markets particularly the East of England itself, London and the East Midlands.

An established DMO network with Visit East of England operating at a ‘two county’ level and a number at destination level (e.g. Visit North Norfolk, Discover Newmarket, Visit the Broads) with private sector representation.

Ipswich King’s Lynn

Our Challenges

External connectivity to parts of our area is seen as poor – both in terms of direct rail links and major roads/motorways. Norwich Airport has a primarily outbound audience and route offer. Internal connectivity within the area is also seen as poor – particularly in terms of public transport. Travelling within the region has its challenges.

Seasonality of the offer, as with other predominantly rural and coastal areas, is an issue.

There is a limited overseas market which means a greater reliance on domestic audiences (although these are arguably easier to reach and have a lower carbon footprint).

While overtourism is not necessarily seen as an overriding problem across Norfolk and Suffolk, there are areas where it does impact in terms of, for example, pressures on sensitive sites and disruption to wildlife, congestion and parking issues. Geographical spread is a bigger issue. With the exception of Norwich, Bury St. Edmunds and Newmarket, the area’s visitor economy is largely based around the coast.

DMO resource levels. While the number of DMOs and their coverage is a potential strength, their levels of resources are mixed and there is a perception of duplication amongst some businesses.

Recruitment and retention of staff is problematic for operators across our area. While this is a national problem, it is exacerbated in our area because of its rural nature and dispersed population, transport infrastructure (particularly for shifts) and seasonality.

Competition from other destinations. We have very strong competition for our key markets, in particular Devon, Cornwall, Yorkshire and the Lake District.

Sizewell C represents a challenge in terms of perceptions, construction disruption, pressures on the local labour force and competing demand for accommodation.

Pin Mill

Felixstowe

Our Opportunities

Our LVEP offers opportunities to strengthen the existing DMO network and improve delivery in a range of areas, developing a coherent brand narrative that has flexibility to allow the individual destinations to articulate their own identities. It also provides an opportunity to increase the profile of the visitor economy in the wider economic debate.

Building on our Naturally brand, developing and positioning Norfolk and Suffolk as the destination for sustainable and regenerative tourism with low impact activities, slow / active travel, and locally sourced food and drink.

Strengthened product themes. We have developed activity tourism with e.g. new cycling trails (such as the recently developed Wolf Way in Suffolk) and walking trails, including the King Charles III England Coast Path. There are opportunities to strengthen and package our offer for outdoor activities and develop other product themes including nature and wildlife, dark skies tourism, wellness tourism, the Deep History coast, water-based activities and food and drink. These could attract out-of-season visits and spread visits across the area.

There are also opportunities to strengthen arts, cultural product trails and events such as Snape Maltings, Out There, Latitude and First Light.

There are a range of potential investments in products that will further strengthen our offer. Examples include Norwich Castle (in partnership with the British Museum), Great Yarmouth Winter Gardens, development on the Ipswich Waterfront, Gainsborough’s House, National Food Museum, and King’s Lynn Guildhall.

The development and professionalising of key WWII heritage sites with volunteer-led independent museums, and the development of itineraries (particularly for overseas markets).

Further investment in the Head East cultural campaign, utilising an intelligence-based approach and focussing on key products e.g. First Light Festival, Brighten the Corners.

Pursue better representation and provision for the visitor economy within the overall skills agenda and networks.

Better communication and promotion of existing programmes in skills and recruitment e.g. the careers hub service, through DMO and VEE contacts/networks building on the existing VENI project, with its innovative Skills Academy Apprenticeship.

Developing a more intelligence-led approach, ensuring it meets industry and stakeholder needs.

Sizewell C is an opportunity in terms of mitigation funding and business / contractor travel and overnight stays.

Transport East’s Global Gateway Priority envisages upgrades to core road corridors (A12, A14, A47) and improvements to East-West rail routes, junction upgrades and better access from Stansted Airport.

3.6 | Our Delivery Structures and Capacity

As might be expected from such a mature destination, our delivery structures for the visitor economy are complex, having developed in line with local needs. There are approximately ten Destination Management Organisations (DMOs), some are BID-based, others membership led, in some areas the local authority is in the lead. We also have 14 local authorities. It is unclear yet what the Government’s reorganisation of local authorities will mean for Suffolk and Norfolk other than a combined Mayoralty for the two counties.

Capacity across the DMOs is equally varied, with some well-funded and resourced organisations and others providing a more basic service. There are some geographical gaps in coverage. A table at Appendix 5 lists the current arrangements.

The award of LVEP status to Visit East of England is transformational to the way we can support businesses and the wider visitor economy. It has already unlocked additional resources from Norfolk County Council and Suffolk (via the Suffolk Chief Officers’ Leadership Team) which means that additional capacity will be in place. Feedback from businesses is that the current set up is confusing and it can be difficult to know who to approach for particular services. Moving forward we will streamline and simplify our engagement structures with clear demarcation lines and a flexible, responsive structure that meets the needs of all our stakeholders. Details can be found in Section 5.4.

Happisburgh

4 | Our Vision, Aims and Priorities

In the previous sections of this DMP we have set out the product/market conditions and the context in which we are currently working. We now turn to the future, setting out our vision, aims and priorities for action.

4.1 | Our Vision

By 2029 Suffolk and Norfolk will be a top-of-mind UK tourism destination, Naturally. Our outstanding built and natural environments, culture and heritage, will attract UK and overseas visitors throughout the year, sustaining profitable and growing businesses with welcoming, committed staff. From family fun and groups to Free Independent Travellers, we will provide a sustainable and inclusive welcome for all.

Above is our vision for the visitor economy by the end of the five years of this Destination Management Plan

Cromer

© Kenneth Freeman

4.2 | Our Aims

Our key aims for the next five years are to:

Grow the value of the visitor economy in a sustainable and responsible way, providing careers for local people and supporting local employment.

Spread the benefits of tourism as wide as possible, seasonally and geographically, to the benefit of all.

Manage our destination effectively, with productive partnerships, clear roles and responsibilities and an engaged private sector.

4.3 | Our Priorities

To achieve these aims we have developed four Priorities (see opposite), which outline what we will do. Each of these priorities is supported by actions to enable delivery. With such a complex and mature destination, it is not possible to list every project that is being undertaken across the whole area. The DMP concentrates on those where partnership working can add value and bring benefits to as many parts of our area as possible. We call these Signature Projects (those which present the first major opportunities) and Development Projects. Further details, including timescales and responsibilities, can be found at the Action Plan (Section 7). The crucially important ongoing day to day business of our local authorities and DMOs will continue, and no doubt increase. We call that work Foundation Activities.

Action Priority

Raise Awareness

Description

Focussing on our advocacy work with regional and national stakeholders, highlighting key issues, promotional activity/campaigns, raising awareness of our outstanding products and experiences with target markets

Develop our Rich and Covering foundation activities such as high quality environments, plus Natural Product developing new products and experiences, cross-geography itineraries and themes

Support Resilient and Detailing our actions to support businesses to become more profitable, Engaged Businesses resilient, sustainable and inclusive working with national partners.

Effective Destination

Outlining our new management and engagement approach to Management destination management and partnerships as well as digital infrastructure development

Broads National Park

5 | Our Action Priorities for Delivery

The Action Priorities and signature projects are at the heart of this Destination Management Plan, raising awareness of Suffolk and Norfolk, developing our rich and natural product, supporting resilient and engaged businesses and creating effective destination management.

Kelling Heath © Keiron Tovell Photography

5.1 | Action Priority 1 Raise Awareness

Promoting our outstanding offer to our target markets is the number one priority for our stakeholders. Our local DMOs will be responsible for the foundation activity of destination level and place-based marketing to UK consumers. They have the detailed knowledge and local contacts to most effectively do that job. Similarly, our attractions, local authorities, BIDs and other consortia are best placed to market to day visitors and residents. Where there is no local DMO, Visits East of England, Suffolk and Norfolk will endeavour to carry out this foundation activity.

At a wider level, we will develop a small number of targeted projects which will:

Promote key product themes

Target markets beyond the resources of individual DMOs

Encourage visitors to experience multiple areas of Norfolk and Suffolk.

We will reinforce and widen the adoption of our successful Naturally brand across all channels and markets. Our messaging will focus on the benefits of holidaying in one of the country’s most sustainable destinations, promoting low impact activities and emphasising the relaxation, wellness and personal enrichment that comes from a slower and locally distinctive approach to tourism and promoting these throughout the seasons.

For overseas marketing, we will focus on those markets with the strongest connections to our area, both physical and motivational. In practice this means those arriving by ferry into our ports. For the North American market we will focus on our WWII heritage and family connections to the area.

Finally, we will keep under review the customer journey to and through our digital assets. There are multiple touch points for consumers looking to discover our area. We need to ensure their journey through one to the other is as seamless as possible, including considering a new, integrated content management system which will also simplify the uploading process for businesses.

The success of these awareness raising actions will be monitored in a regular perceptions study, beginning in 2025 and supplemented by annual Google Trends analysis, gauging Norfolk and Suffolk’s performance as a top-of-mind destination and comparing our performance with our competitors.

We will reinforce and widen the adoption of our successful Naturally brand across all channels and markets.

Cromer

Signature projects for raising awareness

Out of Season Campaigns

We will work with partners, external media, influencers and the travel trade to create marketing campaigns, content and collateral promoting the benefits of visiting out of season in the shoulder periods of February to May and September to December. These campaigns will emphasise the tranquillity, heritage, cultural offer and natural beauty of Norfolk and Suffolk.

Perceptions Study

We will run an annual perceptions study using data from Google Trends and TripAdvisor. Perceptions will be compared against competitor destinations such as Cornwall, Devon, Yorkshire and the Lake District. Understanding how we are perceived will allow us to measure our ambition to be a top-of-mind destination.

Out of season campaigns will emphasise the tranquillity, heritage, cultural offer and natural beauty of Norfolk and Suffolk.

Burnham Overy Staithe

Development projects will include:

Project

Overseas and Travel Trade

Description

Working primarily through 3rd parties (Ferry companies, UK specialist tour Campaign – Near Europe operators, OTAs, etc). Messaging will include active lifestyle and slow tourism

Slow Tourism

Car Free Experiences

Overseas and Travel Trade

Within overall marketing we will emphasise the wellness benefits of our natural assets, dark skies, distinctive businesses, product, food and drink, etc

We will use our marketing channels to develop and promote car free days out and staying itineraries

We will continue our successful activity in North America, focussing on our WWII Campaign – North America heritage and family connections to the area. For overseas work we will look to bid into national funds alongside our Travel Trade work with travel and tour operators

A Welcome for All See Priority 3

New Universal Content

Investigate, with partners, the feasibility of an integrated system supporting Management System websites including Visit Norfolk and Suffolk so that consumers receive consistent information/messaging and business can simplify their promotion to the market

Holkham

© Ian Watts

5.2 | Action Priority 2 Develop our Rich and Natural Product

The places our visitors enjoy (products) and the activities they undertake (experiences) are at the heart of our visitor economy. Norfolk and Suffolk are extremely fortunate in this regard, with outstanding natural and built environments, heritage and culture. However, we cannot afford to be complacent, consumers are becoming increasingly demanding and competition is increasing. Foundation activities such as investment in products and experiences will be the responsibility of businesses and developers. Local authorities will continue to manage/improve facilities and deliver high standards of environmental management (roads and pavements, planting, parks/ country parks, signage and interpretation, etc).

Some locally based capital projects can have a wider impact, one example is the investment in Norwich Castle. The unique partnership with the British Museum will add a national dimension to our offer and provide a focal point for our wider Norman and mediaeval heritage, found in abundance in our towns, villages and countryside. The North Norfolk Deep History Coast is a project that could be extended geographically and thematically across both Norfolk and Suffolk area. A third area for development across both Norfolk and Suffolk is our World War II Heritage. There are current constraints, many museums are volunteer led with limited opening hours, but interest has recently been boosted and the opportunity merits exploration.

Our natural environment, whilst subject to overtourism in some honeypot areas, can nevertheless be developed further for tourism purposes in places which are better suited to accommodate increased visitor numbers. Signature projects will build on the opportunities to enjoy active travel and maximise the assets of our extensive waterways while The Brecks initiative, which covers both Suffolk and Norfolk, provides an opportunity to work collaboratively across the two counties to develop an exemplar sustainable tourism National Character Area.

Developing products and experiences has a key role to play in reducing seasonality and creating better careers. Our natural spectaculars and some major events (eg Thursford) already take place outside of the summer season, we will explore further events and activities (such as mass participation sports events) and consider the opportunities for a major indoor events venue.

Our cultural offer, brought to market by the Head East campaign, can also play a significant role in extending the season. We will work with cultural partners to identify the opportunities for enhancing or creating new cultural content (exhibitions, festivals, etc) with a focus on the shoulder seasons and develop the St Olav Ways cultural pilgrimage route as a signature project.

In the development of our products and experiences there are issues of which we need to be mindful. Firstly, the impacts (both positive and negative) of the construction of Sizewell C in the period covered by this DMP. The situation will be managed principally in East Suffolk but will have wider implications. Secondly, public transport infrastructure and provision across our area could be more focussed towards visitors and visitor economy-related employees. This is a long-term issue and we will add our voice in working with transport providers, Transport East, Government and others to improve

the situation. In particular we will try to ensure that Bus Service Improvement Plans, ticketing initiatives and investment via the Local EV Infrastructure (LEVI) programme benefits visitors as well as residents. All this should be seen in the context of the economic/ financial situation. The outlook is uncertain but continuous improvement across all areas of the product will still be required to maintain and grow market share.

Our cultural offer, brought to market by the Head East campaign, can also play a significant role in extending the season.

Signature projects for developing our rich and natural product

Active Norfolk and Suffolk

Working with interested accommodation business, service providers, local authorities, Visit England, Cycling UK and local associations we will develop a consortium approach to managing and marketing this opportunity across our whole area. Building on recent developments such as the Wolf Way and the opportunities presented by our waterways, we will work through specialist media and routes to market to establish ourselves as a premier location for active travel, including walking and hiking, cycling, horseriding and water-based activities such as boating, canoeing, kayaking and paddle boarding.

Brecks Regenerative Tourism National Character Area

Working with the Brecks Partnership to create the country’s first regenerative tourism National Character Area. Product development opportunities will include water-based activities such as wild swimming, birdwatching, walking trails, dark skies, and woodland crafts and skills.

St Olav Ways

Our cultural offer will be enhanced by the St Olav Ways, creating a new Cultural Pilgrimage Route of the Council of Europe that takes visitors from Great Yarmouth to King’s Lynn via Bury St Edmunds and promotes knowledge about the cultural route of St Olav.

We will establish ourselves as a premier location for walking and hiking, cycling, horse-riding, boating and paddle boarding.

Development projects will include:

Project

Other Natural

Description

Develop in a sensitive and responsible way working with stakeholders Landscapes including the National Park, National Landscapes and other environmental and wildlife groups

Field to Fork

Working with local producers and hospitality businesses, we will look to Programme develop ways of promoting local and distinctive produce/ingredients to visitors and also to encourage greater use of these amongst local businesses

Norwich Castle Plus

Deep History

WWII Heritage

New or Combined

Explore the opportunities created by major investment to further promote our mediaeval heritage to key markets (especially 55+)

Consider any opportunities to widen the scope of North Norfolk’s programme

Explore the opportunity of a cluster of products (sharing best practice, volunteer resources market opportunities, etc)

Package and promote new medium to long distance routes (especially Walking Routes the Coastal Path) and, where gaps in the network have been addressed, promote to key markets through specialist and mainstream media

Trails and Tours

Development of itineraries and experiences that link, for example, our key cultural and heritage assets, pilgrimage sites, vineyards, car free itineraries, etc for an integrated visitor experience

Explore Out of Season

We will audit out of season events, establish where there might be Culture and Events opportunities for more, and also link up these events to create multiple-day itineraries

Cultural Collaboration

Venue

Collaborate with the Norfolk and Suffolk Culture Board to increase investment and develop the cultural economy in the area with a particular focus on those events which either do, or can, attract staying visitors

Consider a feasibility study into a major events venue that could host year-round events

5.3 | Action Priority 3 Support Resilient and Engaged Businesses

Our business base is primarily local and independent, complemented by a significant presence from national players in specific locations (such as CenterParcs, Haven, etc). Our wealth of independent businesses is a strength and a weakness. These businesses have more commitment to the destination, providing a distinctive welcome to visitors, but sometimes lack economies of scale and are more vulnerable to changes in the market.

Ensuring that there is a cohort of profitable, resilient and engaged businesses will be a key priority moving forward. Activities at destination level can include developing content for marketing campaigns, providing a forum and channel to update businesses on news and new initiatives, e.g. available business support, digital capacity building, sustainability initiatives, inclusivity and accessibility measures, etc. We are fortunate in having a strong, if not fully comprehensive, network of local DMOs through which we can engage with the sector, helping them to be aware of trends in the market place and important national initiatives. We will prioritise a Welcome for All through our access and inclusion activities.

Whilst the recruitment and retention of people, particularly young people is a national issue, we have some particular local issues with seasonality which limits year-round employment, plus isolated and rural locations making it difficult for people to access jobs. To complement national initiatives we will continue to deliver our successful VENI project, led by the five FE colleges, with its innovative Skills Academy Apprenticeship, and explore opportunities for our businesses to deepen links with local education providers through the Local Skills Improvement Plan. The VENI Partnership will also deliver our World Host Training signature project to enhance customer service.

Our businesses also require timely and relevant data in order to inform decisions. At the moment we monitor annual volume and value consistently across the whole of Norfolk and Suffolk. More detailed information is available in some, but not all, districts. We will review this situation to understand the opportunities for a consistent, benchmarked approach. As well as looking at our own situation, we will approach and work with VisitEngland and the new LVEP structure on a new national structure of market intelligence gathering.

Latitude Festival

Newmarket Racecourse © VisitBritain / Rod Edwards

Signature projects for supporting resilient and engaged businesses

A Welcome for All, Naturally

Access and Inclusion is a priority for businesses responding to our consultation. Building on recent work in Suffolk, ensuring that we provide facilities and a comprehensive welcome for all our visitors, will form a crucial plank in our approach. This project will take forward our natural attraction for ageing and less mobile visitors, our work with Changing Places, AccessABLE, and promotion of national schemes to increase our profile and performance across all areas of access and inclusion. Initially, we will undertake an audit of local authority accessibility initiatives and reflect them in our activity, whilst promoting the excellent business support tools afforded by VisitEngland.

World Host Training

Through the VENI partnership initiative Visit East of England will deliver WorldHost training in the Principles of Customer Service to 120 businesses in the next three years. More than 300 people will achieve the WorldHost standard, and a further 300 people currently outside the labour market will be engaged, introduced to opportunities across the visitor economy and trained in soft, green and digital skills which a recent report highlights as the key skills business need to progress and grow.

The Principles of Customer Service is a WorldHost certificated course – we have an ambition for this to become the industry standard for the region.

Sizewell C Mitigation

This project will increase our profile and performance across all areas of access and inclusion.

Sizewell C Mitigation presents a significant opportunity for funding and can be used, for example, to fund various projects such as the development of active travel.

Development projects will include:

Project Description

Sustainable

Working with businesses and national tourist bodies, explore the Businesses best ways to promote and encourage sustainable tourism best practices for example: promote awareness of VisitEngland’s Better Business case studies and VisitEngland sustainable tourism toolkits

Supply Chain

Coordinated Engagement

In line with our Field to Fork programme (see Priority 2), we will look to promote a develop a stronger local supply chain across all aspects of supply to accommodation and hospitality businesses

Including, for example, an annual conference, AGMs, regular meeting Event Programme schedules, rationalised and integrated with our partners

VENI+

Product / Market Groups

Data Rollout

Access to Work

Sustainable

Continuation and expansion of our existing recruitment and skills work

Develop a range of specific networks with interest in e.g. overseas markets, low impact water activities. In particular working with Norfolk & Suffolk Culture Board to develop arts and cultural products

Timely analysis and distribution of key destination information as it is produced, we will look to integrate area wide intelligence with DMO programmes where possible

Investigate the opportunities to improve public and shared transport for staff in rural areas

We will explore the options and local appetite for achieving Destination Status accreditation for our destination and our management activities

5.4 | Action Priority 4 Effective Destination Management

How we manage our relationships and our destination is, arguably, equally important as what we do. We have multiple players in the visitor economy, across our geography and functions. The recent awarding of LVEP status to Visit East of England is transformational to the way we work. In addition, feedback from businesses is that there is a lack of understanding and clarity in terms of who does what. That confusion can also be present in the marketplace, where consumers are offered numerous routes to the information they seek.

We must be careful to ensure that partnerships and networks are both relevant and effective. We will dramatically transform our engagement structure, with a clear hierarchy and demarcation of responsibilities. This will ensure that businesses know who does what and who to approach. As a consequence, consumer facing roles will also be clearer. Whilst we are confident that the new structure will bring significant benefits, we will keep the situation under review on an annual basis.

An important priority for businesses who took part in our consultation is advocacy, putting the case for the visitor economy at a regional and local level, and being the voice of Norfolk and Suffolk’s businesses at a national level. We will work with local partners to establish a clear split of responsibilities, setting out a pro-active approach to engaging with the local media and decision makers to maximise benefits for our sector. We will also ensure that the environmental interests of our area are represented in our networks and governance structures.

Foundation activities within this priority include the important work of our DMOs supporting their members (meetings, e-communications, etc), communication on local developments and statutory obligations from the local authorities.

Partnership is a key principle of this plan. Destination management arrangements will evolve as the new delivery arrangements develop and the designation of Visit East of England as a Visit England Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP) matures. In development is a new destination content management system with Destination Core that will link five new websites – VEE, Visit Norfolk, Visit Suffolk, VEE business and VEE travel trade.

Partnership is a key principle of our plan.

Signature projects for effective destination management

New Management and Engagement Approach

Working through the new LVEP status to transform the way we work and clarify roles and responsibilities both for the business sector and in the marketplace. Develop a clear hierarchy and demarcation of responsibilities to be reviewed annually. The new management approach will also provide an opportunity for shape the development of the sector and to play a lobbying role nationally to influence funding and support.

Digital Infrastructure Development

We will work with partners to develop our own digital infrastructure including a comprehensive single data source, simplifying the process for businesses to achieve exposure for their products and services.

Holkham Hall © VisitBritain / Rod Edwards

Key Roles and Responsibilities

Prior to considering the partnership structure, the interrelationships and groupings, it is helpful to consider and lead responsibilities of individual partners. Further details on the roles of specific organisations can be found in the table below. This is the situation as at March 2025, when this DMP was published.

Visit East of England (LVEP)

Advocacy work with national tourism bodies and Government on behalf of local authorities, destination organisations and businesses

Roll out of national (LVEP) programmes

Disseminate national tourism initiatives to local destinations, authorities and businesses

Management of dual county networks and structure

Co-ordinate marketing of Visit Suffolk and Visit Norfolk

Travel Trade activity on behalf of destinations and businesses

PR activity for destinations through national tourism bodies, travel media, etc

Look to bid into appropriate national funding opportunities

Co-ordinating data and intelligence

Working with national tourism bodies, conduct research.

Blickling Hall

Bury St Edmunds

Local DMOs including BIDs and Publicly Led Tourism Teams

Developing and managing the branding, content and social media for individual websites

Place-based Campaign development

Sectoral business engagement.

Suffolk and Norfolk County Councils

Key funding and governance into LVEP

Public transport and highways management

Rights of Way maintenance.

District Councils

Securing funding opportunities (eg LUF, UKSPF, ACE) to develop places and product

Events support and development

Developing cultural content

Venue management

Public realm management, planning, public services

Commissioning data and intelligence.

Broads Authority and Landscape Management Teams

Countryside and rights of way management

Protecting and enhancing natural beauty across the National Park/National Landscapes, etc

Interpretation and events to help promote the special qualities of the National Park/National Landscapes, etc.

Norwich

Newmarket

Gressenhall Wymondham

The following table outlines a suggested list of lead responsibilities for each of the four priorities for actions. None of the four will be achievable without genuine partnership across a range of partners.

Priority for Action Lead Organisation(s)

Other Key Partners

Raise Awareness Visit East of England (Brand and Businesses Coordination), Local DMOs/BIDs Local authorities (Domestic Marketing) BIDs

Develop our Rich and Local Authorities (County and Norfolk Broads National Park

Natural Product District Councils)

Support Resilient and Local DMOs/BIDs

Engaged Businesses

Effective Destination Visit East of England

National Landscape Management Teams

Communities / Town and Parish Councils

VENI Network

Visit East of England (national conduit and thematic e.g. sustainability and access) Businesses

Local authorities Management

Local DMOs

Key Businesses

Engagement Structure

In the organogram below we set out how we will be organised to deliver the Destination Management Plan. The LVEP Board will function as the official LVEP and perform the management oversight and advisory function for the company. It will be supported by a DMP/Operational Group which will retain oversight of the DMP and the work of the four subgroups, taking responsibility for the ‘Effective Destination Management’ priority action. Whilst exact composition is to be established, the four subgroup chairs will sit on LVEP Board. The subgroups themselves will be responsible for three of the four action priorities of the DMP as follows:

1 | Raise Awareness – DMO Coalition

2 | Develop our Rich and Natural Product –VE Group, Naturally Group

3 | Support Resilient and Engaged Businesses –Skills and Business Engagement Group

The Naturally Group will focus on sustainable tourism initiatives and work across the other three to ensure that environmental and social responsibility is embedded across all workstreams. The Visit Suffolk and Visit Norfolk Groups (composed of both DMOs and Local authorities) will exist outside of the formal LVEP structure, delivering key campaigns and marketing content individually and will come together as the DMO coalition to consider joint opportunities, working with VEE as the LVEP delivery body.

We are entering a very different era for the visitor economy in Norfolk and Suffolk, the structure we have developed will be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure it is fit for purpose.

6 | Our Performance Targets

Long Melford

Key Indicators

To monitor our progress across the five-year timeframe of this DMP, we have established a small number of key indicators which track our specific objectives, including reducing seasonality and improving the percentage of total visitors further inland. Some of the indicators are based on the Cambridge model, which we already commission annually for a range of geographies.

Others use national sources. We have also set ourselves a target to be achieved by 2029.

What is important is that the indicator is meaningful to businesses as part of our overall engagement strategy. We will therefore review the indicators on an annual basis.

Awareness % of respondents listing Norfolk To be +15% Perceptions and Suffolk as a preferred UK destination established Survey (2025)

Awareness Unprompted combined searches 4,2791 6,000 Google Trends for ‘Norfolk Holiday’ and ‘Suffolk Holiday’ (2024)

Economic Growth Visitor Spending2

and Careers

Reducing % of staying visitors (self-catering

Lighthouse via Seasonality only) in March, April, May and Visit Britain3 October (2024)

Increasing % of all visitors in districts without 55% 60% Cambridge Geographic Spread a coastline4 Model

Effective Engagement in programmes and TBD +75% VEE Management campaigns by businesses (2024)

1: 12 months to 19.12.24 | 2: ‘Direct, indirect and induced spending’ per Cambridge Model | 3: ‘Total nights reserved’ in four relevant ITL3 areas – 2024 data currently available to end October (figure is Oct ’23 – Oct ‘24), potential to add/use STR if purchased | 4: ‘All trips’ – Breckland, Broadland, Norwich, South Norfolk; Babergh, Ipswich, Mid Suffolk, West Suffolk.

7 | Our Action Plan

Bury St Edmunds

A Plan for Each of Our Priorities

The following section outlines a three to five year action plan against the four strategic priorities identified in the DMP. The action plan is tabular and is further split into those actions which can be met from existing budgets (including staffing levels and revenue expenditure), and those which will require additional resources (optional but retained for this framework). Signature projects are highlighted in caps.

Each project has a priority. These are as follows:

Priority 1 = must do

Priority 2 = high priority

Priority 3 = medium priority

Priorities have been allocated against a number of criteria including: strategic fit, market relevance, deliverability, fundability, affordability, expressed support from businesses and other stakeholders during consultation, etc. As mentioned in Section 5, the action plan only lists those projects of ‘signature’ or development status which have a ‘more than local’ impact or footprint.

The level of resources that are ultimately available will determine which priorities are undertaken.

The Who? column identifies the key organisations responsible, but others may be involved in delivery. Where an organisation is highlighted in brackets, it means their involvement is a potential which needs to be determined as the plan develops.

Abbreviations:

DMO Destination Management Organisations

LA Local Authorities in partnership

NBNPA Norfolk Broads National Park Authority

NCC Norfolk county Council

NL National Landscape Management Teams

PS Private Sector Businesses

SCC Suffolk County Council

VE Visit England

VEE Visit East of England

VENI Visitor Economy Network Initiative

Timescales indicate when a project is likely to be undertaken. Although this is a five year plan, action is very much focused on activity that will take place in Years 1-3. There will be periodic reviews to monitor progress against the action plan. Timescales can be brought forward (or pushed back depending on resources). Calendar years are anticipated, and Year 1 begins in January 2025. The final column identifies, where appropriate, the potential resources. This is an order of magnitude and quite often highlighted as an approximate amount (with a ~). Where no amount is identified, it is anticipated that the activity will be achievable within either existing, or the planned additional, staff and budgetary resources at Visit East of England.

Action Priority 1: Raise Awareness

Actions using existing budgets

OUT OF SEASON Promotion of out of season 1 VEE, DMO

CAMPAIGNS* offer (including events) within all overall marketing efforts

PERCEPTION Annual perceptions study

STUDY* using data from Google Trends and TripAdvisor to compare against competitor destinations Overseas And Travel

develop

Trade Campaign – existing travel trade Near Europe based campaigns

the wellness

benefits of our destination within mainstream marketing

to develop and promote car free itineraries

signature project * Signature project

Broads National Park

Action Priority 2: Develop our Rich and Natural Product

Actions using existing budgets/funding

Project

THE BRECKS* Integrated programme to develop 1 SCC

this unique natural area, to create sustainable tourism in a National Character Area

Other Natural Develop in a sensitive and 2 NBNPA, NL

Landscapes responsible way working with stakeholders

Norwich Castle Plus Explore opportunities created 1 VEE, NCC

by major investment to further promote our mediaeval heritage to key markets (especially 55+)

Deep History Consider any opportunities 3 NCC, NNDC

to widen the scope of North Norfolk’s programme

WWII Heritage Explore the opportunity of a 1 VEE

cluster of products

New or Combined Package and promote new 2 LA, NL, –Walking Routes medium to long distance NCC, SCC routes and close gaps in the network

Trails and Tours Development of itineraries 1 VEE

and experiences that link key products and experiences

Explore Out of Season Audit out of season events, 1 VEE –Culture and Events establish opportunities for more, link up events to create multiple-day itineraries

Actions using existing budgets/funding (cont/d)

Cultural Collaborate with the Norfolk 2 VEE, LA, PS –Collaboration and Suffolk Culture Board to increase investment and develop the cultural economy in the area with a particular focus on visitor events

Actions requiring additional resources

ACTIVE NORFOLK Integrated programme of 1 VEE, LA, PS

AND SUFFOLK* business support, marketing and product development to position the area as major destination for active travel and activities

THE ST OLAV WAYS* Work with relevant stakeholders 1 VEE, LA TBC to develop and promote the a new Cultural Pilgrimage Route of the Council of Europe

Field to Fork Promoting local and distinctive 2 VEE, LA, PS ~£10k Programme produce/ingredients to visitors and also to encourage greater use of these amongst local businesses

Venue

Consider a feasibility study into 3 TBC ~£35-£50k a major events venue that could host year round events

* Signature project

Action Priority 3: Support Resilient and Engaged Businesses

Actions using existing budgets Project

A WELCOME FOR ALL, Integrated programme of advice 1 VEE, LA, –NATURALLY* and support for businesses, DMO, PS building on existing provision

WORLD HOST Deliver World Host training in 1 VENI, PS

TRAINING* the Principles of Customer Service to 120 businesses in the next three years

SIZEWELL C Apply for mitigation funds 1 LA, VEE

MITIGATION* as appropriate

Sustainable Explore the best ways to 1 VEE, LA, PS

Businesses promote and encourage sustainable tourism best practices

Supply Chain Develop a stronger local supply 2 LA, DMO, PS –chain across all aspects of supply to accommodation and hospitality businesses

Coordinated An annual conference, AGMs, 1 VEE, DMO –Engagement Event regular meeting schedules, Programme rationalised and integrated with our partners

VENI+ Continuation and expansion 1 VENI, PS –of our existing recruitment and skills work * Signature project

Actions using existing budgets (cont/d)

Product / Market Develop a range of specific 2 VEE, PS –Groups networks with interest in e.g. overseas markets, low impact water activities, working with Norfolk & Suffolk Culture Board to develop arts and cultural products

Actions requiring additional resources

to improve public and shared transport for staff in

Destination Status achieve accreditation

Bury St Edmunds Flatford

Action Priority 4: Effective Destination Management

NEW ENGAGEMENT Development, implementation 1 VEE –STRUCTURE* and review of new engagement and management structure

DIGITAL Development of single 1

INFRASTRUCTURE database to power website DEVELOPMENT* and other digital marketing

* Signature project

Burgh Castle

Appendix

Norwich Lanes

Appendix 1: List of Reviewed Policies and Strategies

Documents covering both Suffolk and Norfolk

Visit East of England Destination Development Plan 2021-2025.

Norfolk and Suffolk Culture Manifesto

Norfolk & Suffolk Local Skills Improvement Plan and Annex B 2023

Visitor Economy Network Initiative.

Norfolk Strategic Documents

The Borough of Great Yarmouth DMP ‘Our place is your stage’, July 2020

Visit Great Yarmouth Destination Management Plan, 2021-2024

The Norfolk Broads DMP Sustainable Tourism in the Broads 2016–2020, A Tourism Strategy and Destination Management Plan for the Broads National Park

West Norfolk Tourism Development Plan 2022-26, A strategic plan for local tourism and hospitality Norwich Economic Strategy 2019-2024

North Norfolk Corporate Plan 2023–2027.

Suffolk Strategic Documents

Suffolk Visitor Economy Carbon Net-zero Assessment and Impact Study

Accessibility and Inclusion; Enabling growth in the visitor economy.

Suffolk County Council Corporate Strategy 2022-26

East Suffolk Council Visitor Economy Strategy 2022-2027

East Suffolk Cultural Strategy 2023-2028

East Suffolk Economic Strategy 2022-2027

All About Ipswich: Visitor Economy Strategy for Ipswich 2023-2024.

Proud of Ipswich: Ipswich Borough Council Corporate Strategy, Cornhill Draft Strategy (2023) and Towns Fund projects

Invest in Ipswich – Inward Investment Strategy

All About Ipswich Business Strategy 2021-22

Bury St Edmunds St Edmunds Visitor Destination Plan – Baseline and Action Plan (2015)

Culture, Heritage and Visitor Economy Strategy for Babergh and Mid Suffolk Districts 2023-28.

Appendix 2: Accommodation Supply

Notes:

1: Units = rooms (serviced), pitches (caravan and camping), letting unit (non-serviced). | 2: Source: Accommodation stock audit: VisitEngland (2016) – this is a dated piece of work and likely to be an under-representation of serviced and caravan and camping accommodation across the area. | 3: Source: Lighthouse – Short Term Rentals Mar 24 (published by VisitEngland 2024. Lighthouse is a company that specialises in tracking short term rental markets and supply drawing data from multiple online sources like Booking.com, VRBO, and AirBnB. The data presented here is based on supply in March 2024 – at peak times this might be greater as additional supply comes on line.

Appendix 3: Visits to Attractions – Norfolk

The following table summarises visits to a number (but not all) of attractions in Norfolk from 2017 to 2022. This is based on VisitEngland’s Annual Visits to Attractions Survey.

Appendix 3: Visits to Attractions – Suffolk

The following table summarises visits to a number (but not all) of attractions in Suffolk from 2017 to 2022. This is based on VisitEngland’s Annual Visits to Attractions Survey.

Appendix 4: Market Segments and Product Fit

The following table summarises the key products and destinations/areas that will appeal to potential market segments (based on VisitEngland’s Project Lion segments). It should be noted that this analysis is relatively high level and looks at the broad product offer.

Market Segment

Description

Key Activities Undertaken (and size)1 by segment2

Country Loving

Empty nesters with traditional values – Explored countryside

Traditionalists (30%) that take countryside breaks.

– Visited stately home, castle, Good quality, secure accommodation historic site, a garden is a priority

– Outdoor pursuits (e.g. walking, cycling)

– Explored small town

Fun in the Sun (20%) Parents looking for family orientated

– Went to beach summer holidays where beaches play – Visited theme park, a starring role. Tend to seek cheaper, pleasure beach more ‘social’ alternatives to hotel

– Went to zoo, aquarium accommodation, such as caravans or sea life centre or holiday camps

– Explored small town

– Outdoor pursuits (e.g. walking, cycling)

Fuss Free

Empty nesters on a budget, they seek – Visited friends / relatives

Value Seekers (11%) good value beach holidays with convenient – Went to beach / seaside transport links (they are more likely to – Visited theme park, travel by public transport). Tend to be pleasure beach less digitally active than other segments

Notes:

1: As a percentage of the total domestic market – see Project Lion. | 2: Activities which these segments are more likely to undertake (compared to other markets) – see Project Lion. | 3: Represents a (subjective) measure of the relative strength of fit between the market segment and the Norfolk Suffolk offer (compared to other potential destinations). A score of five is a very strong fit, 1 or 2 is a weaker fit i.e. other destinations might be stronger.

– Nature reserves and sites – Suffolk and Norfolk Coast

– Historic houses, sites and gardens (esp National Landscapes National Trust) / Sandringham Estate – Broads National Park

– Walking (not necessarily long distance) – Wool Towns and Constable Country

– Market towns and villages – Other areas (West Norfolk, Breckland

– Distinctive/quality food and Thetford, Waveney)

– Beaches – Great Yarmouth

– Attractions like ROARR!, Jimmy’s Farm, – East Suffolk (esp. Lowestoft) Go Ape, Piers and Yarmouth Pleasure Beach, – North Norfolk

Mid Norfolk Railway – Boat trips and boat hire

– Beaches – Great Yarmouth

– Piers and pleasure beaches – Lowestoft – Felixstowe

Appendix

4 (cont/d)

Market Segment Description

Key Activities Undertaken (and size)1 by segment2

Free and Easy Mini

More likely than other segments to be – Attended an entertainment Breakers (26%) ‘young, free and single’. Demographically (e.g. concert, cinema) close to ‘the average Joe’.

– Explored large town / city

– Visited friends / relatives

– Visited museum / gallery

– Went on guided tour

– Watched a sporting event

Aspirational Family Typically information-hungry,

– Watched a sporting event Fun (12%)

London-based high earners with

– Went on guided tour children at home, they regularly take

– Visited theme park, pleasure beach city breaks where they can indulge in

– Went to zoo, aquarium or active, family-friendly pursuits, such sea life centre as sporting events and cultural visits

– Attended an entertainment (e.g. concert, cinema)

– Visited museum / gallery

Niche / Special Interest4

Activities, offers and events that generate their own audiences – often special interest. Audiences vary in characteristics – the commonality is the activity

Notes:

1: As a percentage of the total domestic market – see Project Lion. | 2: Activities which these segments are more likely to undertake (compared to other markets) – see Project Lion. | 3: Represents a (subjective) measure of the relative strength of fit between the market segment and the Norfolk Suffolk offer (compared to other potential destinations). A score of five is a very strong fit, 1 or 2 is a weaker fit i.e. other destinations might be stronger. | 4: These segments do not form part of the Project Lion analysis so estimating their size is not possible. They might be relatively small (e.g. the audience for a single event) or possibly subsumed within other Project Lion segments (e.g. cyclists and nature watchers as part of Country Loving Traditionalists).

– Concerts (e.g. Regent Theatre, The Playhouse) – Norwich and sporting performances – Ipswich

– Nightlife – bars, restaurants, clubs – Bury St Edmunds

– Museums and galleries – Sainsbury Centre

Castle Museum and Art Gallery, Ipswich Art Gallery, Wolsey Art Gallery

– Festivals and events (see below)

– Deep History Coast – Norwich

– Blakeney Point – Suffolk Coast

– Jimmy’s Farm – North Norfolk

– Lavenham (Godric’s Hollow)

– Banham Zoo

– Football

– Sports (Ipswich FC, Norwich FC, Newmarket)

– Events (e.g. Aldeburgh Festival, Latitude Festival, First Light Festival, Lynn Festival and the Norfolk & Norwich Festival)

– Cycling (Suffolk Coastal Route, Peddars Way, Rebellion Way) and Watersports

– Nature (esp. bird) watching (RSPB sites and other reserves)

Appendix 5: Local Destination Management Arrangements 2025

Area / Local Authority

Destination Management Arrangements

Breckland Local Authority – primarily focused on regeneration and place development

Great Yarmouth

BID-based DMO, supports public relations, events and research

King’s Lynn and West Norfolk Local Authority with small (1-2 people) tourism team

North Norfolk

Norwich

DMO (Visit North Norfolk) led (with Local Authority support)

DMO (Visit Norwich) – facilitated by BID, local authority strategic support

South Norfolk and Broadland Local Authority led – emerging partnership in South Norfolk, otherwise town (council) based approach

Babergh and Mid Suffolk Local authority led, deliver marketing, events support and cultural attractions

East Suffolk

Ipswich

West Suffolk

The Broads National Park

DMO (The Suffolk Coast-membership model), financially supported by Local Authority

DMO (All About Ipswich), facilitated by the BID

DMO (Bury and Beyond) facilitated by the BID, LA tourism under ED DMO (Discover Newmarket), commercially funded by members and tours

Business led DMO (Visit the Broads membership model) with National Park support

Beccles Ipswich Waterfront

The Suffolk and Norfolk LVEP is operational thanks to support from the Suffolk Public Leaders Group and Norfolk County Council

Written by

VISIT SUFFOLK

VISIT NORFOLK