THE AWESOME OPPORTUNITY TO DISCOVER THE LOCAL

Around the world today we are experiencing more lock down and further restrictions being either re-imposed or newly applied in response to fresh spikes in infections. It is clear that, in many countries, we are still in the First Wave of this pandemic. For countries in the Northern Hemisphere we now fear what the onset of winter might mean without a vaccine.

Whilst international travel remains very limited with policies associated with travel and associated quarantine regulations changing on a daily (sometimes hourly) basis, domestic tourism is providing some optimism and much needed revenues for many tourism destinations and businesses. In some instances, as in Slovenia, Denmark and Malta their respective Governments have given residents a direct incentive to stay and eat locally. Other countries are offering a range of business support measures to bolster their tourism and hospitality sectors. All are doing their best to provide guidelines, road maps and other means to assist. All are doing their best in an uncertain, volatile and scary environment.

From Jackson Hole (Wyoming) to the Isle of Arran in Scotland; from Slovenia and Croatia to Rotorua (New Zealand); from West Wales to Norway there are positive signs of high levels of occupancy and spend driven by domestic tourism. However, there are real concerns within the host destinations that the ‘early escapers’ are less inclined to follow the guidance for social distancing and appropriate behaviour in the places they are visiting. Jackson Hole has recently reported that 75% of all persons now hospitalized for COVID19 in the destination are visitors. There is a double hit now being effected as a result with many tourism businesses losing staff who are having to quarantine and the employer not being able to cover their wages.

The notion of common trust between the destination and its visitors is being severely strained.

Despite the optimistic predictions by the likes of Sir Tim Clark, the head of Emirates charged with piloting the company through this period of severe turbulence, who has publicly stated that by 2030 airline passenger numbers will have doubled the pre-COVID19 levels, all the evidence suggests that domestic tourism will continue dominate leisure travel behaviour for the next 3-5 years.

This means that NOW IS THE TIME to invest in our domestic tourism industry and in our destinations. Now is the time to get the destination plans re-set and in balance with the interests of the community, the visitor and the environment (natural, built, cultural and linguistic).

This does not mean investing in large, or expensive, infrastructure projects or new hotels and other products. It means investment in a new generation of leaders,a focus on getting the simple, basic, amenities and facilities right in the destination. It means doing things well, with quality and innovation…. with empathy, sensitivity and with a high degree of ‘the local’.

We have always travelled for difference. That difference resides in the very local. It is about telling the local story. This is relevant for resident as well as visitors. It is a chance to really enact the 2018 Barcelona Declaration ‘ Better Places to Live, Better Places to Visit.

Celebrating the local, the lure of the local, the unique assets of a small place provide the intrigue and the lodestones to peak our interest. The pandemic has provided the unparalleled opportunity for us to integrate tourism with our educational curricula, with our health services, with our local societies. In the words of Jacina Adehern, the charismatic PM of New Zealand, ‘there is now an awesome opportunity to explore your own country, its history and culture.’

For me, living in Wales, not only was this a chance to get to know my Filltir Sgwar (the square mile) around the Afon Llwchwr and the Burry Estuary it was also a chance to look again at my place of birth and growing up - south Somerset.

This part of southwest England was John Steinbeck’s favourite place on earth - the place where he was happiest. he lived at Discove Cottage (near Bruton) with his wife, Elaine between March and September, 1959). wrote:

I wish you could feel this place… there’s a goodness here… something that clears the eyes. This part of Somerset is the most enchanting of all counties. She has been stirring the soul since before the legends of King Arthur began. Nothing in sight hasn’t been here since the sixth century. I am depending on Somerset to give me something new, which I need. We couldn’t have found a more perfect place. A sense of wonder, the almost breathless thing.

Van Morrison also found the area most appealing. Not only did he have a studio not far from Bruton he also recorded the Dave Collett and Acker Bilk (two Somerset music legends) instrumental ‘Summer Set’, which Morrison re-titled ‘Somerset’ and added these words:

A time I can’t forget, when we were sippin’ cider in the shade as the sun was setting in the west

Today, the investment needed to raise the quality of the destination is happening across a number of villages. In Bruton we have a remarkabel revival led by Hauser & Wirth Somerset, The Newt Somerset, At The Chapel and The Number One; In Pilton we have The Galstonbury Festival, East Coker celebrates T S Eliot (whi I think could have been a bit more generous about the village and local folk than is reflected in his Four Quartets); in West Coker there is the remarkable restoration of the Dawes Twine Works and the delightful Lanes Hotel; down the road in Haselbury the irrepressable Roger Bastable and his team have the Haselbury Mill and Great Tithe Barn. Julian Temperley is setting new standards with is Somerset Cider Brandy.

A small rural area setting the tempo and raising the bar for domestic tourism.

None of this comes as a surprise because, after all, this place has always punched above its weight - excelling in making sail cloth, gloves, cider and helicopters for the world…… and, then of course, there is its famous football club - The Glovers who have also performed to levels that have defied expectations.

To find out more see: ‘Wish You Were Here’ the new book and a monograph telling the story of the area’s sail cloth industry. Please contact me through this website to obtain copies.