Valley is worth more than a day trip

REGULAR readers will know I’m convinced that there is far more money to be made than at present from the tourism industry in Rossendale.

One of the biggest things holding the area back is a lack of places to stay overnight. The lack of a large hotel within the Valley – although there are several over various borders – is an obvious challenge.

But maybe things are finally moving in the right direction.

Rossendale council has over-ruled its own planning officers to support the building of hotel rooms at the Fisherman’s Retreat at Shuttleworth, which is a victory for common sense over devotion to the letter of the planning law.

And now we also have glamping in the Valley, with the arrival of glamping pods – essentially wooden tents – at Rossendale Holidays near Water. (see page 21).

Rossendale Holidays currently have holiday cottages and ensuite bedrooms at their site near Clough Bottom Reservoir, and hope to attract new visitors who are after something a little more quirky.

I hope it works for them – and that, along with the new hotel rooms at the Fisherman’s Retreat, more projects continue to come along which make it easier for people to spend more time in Rossendale, which surely needs to start marketing itself as being worth much more than just a day trip.