A Truro based tourism marketing business which established Germany’s number 1 website for holidays in Cornwall is looking to capitalise with a new website aimed at French holidaymakers. Urlaub Cornwall, which is behind the successful www.urlaubcornwall.de has now launched www.vacancesangleterre.fr to encourage peaking market for the South West of England.

Proximity to the UK makes France its largest inbound tourism market ranked by number of visits and in the top three for spend according to Visit Britain. The South West received over 240,000 visits and a spend of £76 million in 2014.

Niall MacDougall managing director at UrlaubCornwall said: “The French are a really significant tourism market for the UK and with our new website we want to accomplish exactly the same as we’ve done in the German language.

“We use our local knowledge and a finger on the pulse of what’s new and interesting to enhance the level of information currently offered about Cornwall and indeed the wider South and South West.”

Central Government recently sanctioned a £5m program to encourage overseas tourism in the South West mainly through the existing tourism bodies.

They will promote a variety of themes to raise knowledge of what its unique offering is.

Highlighting the upside potential the Dept of the Deputy Prime Minister cited the fact that in the first 9 months of last year the South West saw only 10% of the more than 13 million international visitors that flocked to London.

Mr MacDougall added: “We feel the private sector has to step up to the plate too and be prepared to deliver tourism services for overseas markets long term. In our view there is an opportunity for local specialists to develop and serve this market better, which we’re committed to do.

“As with the discerning German market we want to display the high and rising standards of holiday accommodation in Cornwall. We are work with Classic Cottages to offer French speakers a chance to search in their own language from their highly rated selection of over 700 properties across Cornwall, Devon and further afield.”

Source: http://www.westernmorningnews.co.uk/Tourism-marketing-firm-Urlaub-Cornwall-aims/story-27924642-detail/story.html