Historic Cities, which includes Greenwich, has secured further investment from
the Discover England Fund for their innovative England Originals project. The project was
created in 2018 to encourage more US visitors to explore regional England and has already
benefited from over £1m of investment from the fund. This new investment will be used to
promote the cities to domestic audiences in 2021 to help with recovery from the Covid-19
pandemic.
England Originals brings together 16 of England’s historic destinations under one brand
umbrella and promotes them to younger audiences. It does this by combining story-telling
and augmented reality with a visitor offer that emphasises fun activities and new
experiences set against a backdrop of some of England’s stunning heritage locations.
The new investment will be used to enhance and expand the visitor offer, produce new
inspirational content and deliver a consumer marketing campaign in early 2021. It will also
support ongoing collaboration with US tour operators and travel agents for when travel
restrictions are lifted and international visitors are able to return.
Barrie Kelly, Chief Executive of Visit Greenwich, said:
“We are delighted that England Originals has received this investment. Our businesses need
help and support to survive the pandemic and it is a welcome boost in difficult times. This
funding provides the resource to package our Greenwich offer in different ways to increase
our appeal to a millennial audience. We will be working with our partners and the travel
trade to position Greenwich as the most obvious and appealing destination to base visitors
to London for the foreseeable future.”
Melanie Sensicle, chair of England’s Historic Cities, said:
“To secure a fifth year of funding from the Discover England Fund is fantastic and a
testament to the strength of our partnership. We are an example of what can be achieved when destinations work together and we look forward to introducing England Originals to
domestic visitors’.
VisitEngland Director Andrew Stokes said:
“Millions of jobs and local economies depend on tourism right across the country and the
industry needs all of us to make sure it gets back on its feet. This funding will encourage
people to get out and discover the outstanding destinations and quality attractions on our
doorstep and also keep England’s tourism products and experiences front-of-mind for future
international travellers. Now in its fifth year the Discover England Fund is all about
embedding these amazing tourism products and reaching new audiences to drive visitor
growth and boost local economies.”