Rural Development- Tourism’s future in the UK

As the summer comes to an end, I would like to reflect on tourism and explore what we can expect and plan for, for tourisms future.

This summer we were granted a clear vision on the impact of climate change, a shift from the normal put many of our summer holiday plans at risk. With life-threatening temperatures in mainland Europe, wildfires and flooding on popular Greek islands, flash flooding in Slovenia and more, climate change is becoming more extreme - ultimately, making myself and others reconsider their summer holidays. A study by the European Travel Commission highlighted that cooler countries such as the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Ireland and Denmark have experienced an increase in popularity.

Whether the change in climate influences UK holidaymakers to prioritise the staycation or foreign tourists to prioritise cooler location as found in the UK, our tourist locations will continue to be in demand. The Office of National Statistics identified a resurgent period in which the UK tourism returned close to pre-Covid levels in January and March. However, we are yet to find out whether this has continued. 

At Boyer, we have been involved in an array of tourist accommodation and facilities, with many more in the pipeline. These include luxury and unique restored properties and retreats, caravan holiday parks, accessible and convenient hotels, tourist activities and attractions. Examples include:

• A unique example is a rentable holiday home along the Jurassic Coast in Dorset. A redundant and derelict World War II bunker, previously used as part of a wider radar station to detect enemy aircraft crossing the English Channel, was sympathetically restored and is now a very popular hideaway in rural Dorset.
• Another obscure but interesting example is the conversion of two farm silos in Suffolk for tourist accommodation, where Boyer secured planning permission in 2022.

At Boyer we encourage and support the creation of new tourism-related development within the UK. The range of tourism that the UK has to offer is incredible. The current climate circumstance is opportunity not to be missed, an opportunity for rural communities and local planning authorities to improve their economic development. The UK could become more and more popular due to its cooler climate, as European tourism becomes troubled with climate change. Also, from our experience in the pandemic, staycation have tremendous potential and previously reached high popularity. Staycations also have the advantage of not contributing to high CO2 emitting activity of flying to different areas of Europe, reducing the tourism impact on the climate crisis.