We need to shout about the reasons for tourists to stay
Keeping a close eye on life in the Valley
IT is, we’re told, the year of the Staycation - although you can argue what staycation means.
Up until this year, I always thought a staycation was staying at home for your holiday - but this year, it appears to mean having holidays in the UK.
Either way, Rossendale is surely well placed to make the most of a UK tourism boom.
This week heralded a return to the nearest thing to normality that we’ve had for a year - shops re-opening, restaurants opening up on the streets and tourist attractions welcoming visitors once again.
Rossendale Council recently published findings of an economic review which painted a positive vision for the future of the borough.
Of course, the borough’s economy isn’t going to be built on tourism, but surely 2021 could be the year to get more people discovering the borough.
The council doesn’t have the money for a big marketing campaign to shout about Rossendale - but maybe it doesn’t need one.
We’re 30 minutes from the centre of Manchester, an hour away from Liverpool, 45 minutes from Preston and an hour from Leeds. When people are thinking about to spend a day trip out in any of those areas, how does Rossendale come to the fore?
We, as residents of Rossendale, probably hold they key here. Let’s shout about what’s here - be that the railway, the parks, the walks, the town centres, the restaurants, the bars and everything inbetween.
Let’s share our pictures of how beautiful our area is. Let’s shout about the good customer service we get in local businesses.
Let’s, when friends suggest meeting up, suggest they come to us and we’ll show them a good day out here.
Hidden gem is often an over-used phrase but it very much applies to Rossendale, and indeed Ramsbottom too. People who have visited and spent leisure time here invariably speak incredibly positively about it.
I remember a few years ago turning up at the Ramsbottom Chocolate Festival and being surprised to see organised coach tours pulling up.
I got chatting to one of the drivers and the trip was actually going to the Lake District, but was including a trip to the Chocolate Festival on the way.
That’s the place we need to be in people’s minds.
Go to the coast? Head to the Peak District?
Early start for the Lakes? What about a trip to Rossendale?
Lunch in a pub, walk around a town centre, time meeting friends in a lovely park, hike in the hills, biking around Bacup - there’s plenty to do here, we just need to shout about it more.
Of course, it’s not all about us. If there’s one thing which could transform things, it would be the council and the East Lancashire Railway working to encourage more people to begin their steam adventures in Rawtenstall, or to get off the train when it reaches our end.
Too often, you see trains packed full of people pulling into Rawtenstall, only to pull back out again several minutes later. They see Rossendale, but don’t enjoy it.
There’s so much to enjoy here - and simply shouting about the area could make all the difference.