Visit Isle of Man Launch 'On Your Doorstep - One Big Weekend 2020'

Following the success of last year’s inaugural event, Visit Isle of Man is pleased to announce the launch of ‘On Your Doorstep - One Big Weekend 2020’. In collaboration with the Isle of Man Arts Council and Culture Vannin, the executive agency is calling for tourism trade partners to register interest in the scheme.

The ‘On Your Doorstep’ event, taking place over the weekend of 14^th – 15^th March 2020, aims to encourage local businesses in the tourism industry to offer free or reduced price tickets to give Isle of Man residents the chance to visit the many attractions ‘on their doorstep’. Across the weekend, the purpose is to showcase the vast array of high quality and unique activities and experiences available for residents to share with visiting friends and relatives.

Rob Callister MHK, Political Member with responsibility for Visit Isle of Man and motorsport commented:

‘We were delighted with the response from our trade partners to last year’s event and hope to make this year’s even bigger. This is an excellent initiative for tourism businesses to kick start the 2020 peak visitor season for the Isle of Man and to hopefully once again inspire islanders to discover everything the Isle of Man has to offer on their doorstep.

‘It is vital for the industry to work together to create an exceptional visitor experience. A key aspect of this is to garner support from our residents who will serve to promote our extraordinary Island to their off Island friends and relatives. Visiting Friends and Relatives represented 32% of the Isle of Man’s total visitor numbers in 2018 and remains a key focus for Visit Isle of Man. This weekend event is a great way of supporting this market and I would encourage our tourism businesses to get involved and make the most of the marketing and operational benefits the weekend will bring.’

The event will be supported by MiQuando who will be providing the box office administration to Visit Isle of Man and all partner businesses. Tickets and offers will be uploaded to www.visitisleofman.com later this month for residents to view, before applications for the available tickets open in February.

Simon Read from The Venture Centre said;

‘I would urge all tourism businesses to take full advantage of this weekend to raise awareness of the fantastic experiences they offer. We received a phenomenal response and uptake last year, selling all tickets to our taster archery sessions whilst receiving subsequent, future bookings from these visitors for our other activities including gorge walking, coasteering and abseiling. Not only was the event a fantastic platform for us to reach new audiences but it also provided an ideal opportunity for us to gear up for the upcoming tourist season, of which we believe we benefitted greatly from positive word of mouth recommendations. It’s also an ideal opportunity for businesses to trial online booking if it’s not something already utilised as well as a platform for capturing visitor reviews and quality photography to be used in marketing campaigns.’

If you are interested in getting your business involved in the scheme, and offering limited free or reduced price tickets to your attraction, please contact Visit Isle of Man at tourism@gov.im or call 686888.

More information about the event and ticket sales for residents will follow in due course.