Tourism Research

Research is important because it helps us to make decisions about how to develop our work and what activities to undertake. It can also help businesses in the city to make decisions. Click here to see the latest 2007 Brighton Survey report (467k).

We have an ongoing programme of research in the following areas:

Visitor surveys
We ask visitors who are here about their experience of the city, what motivated them to visit, what they have visited, how much they have spent and how they rate the destination. Visitors are surveyed via the VIC, online and through onstreet surveys.

Hotel Futures Study
Commissioned in October 2006, the study's principal aims were:

• to provide a robust, up to date picture of current and future hotel capacity in Brighton and Hove and identify gaps in provision by category of hotel
• to evaluate potential hotel sites in Brighton and Hove against hotel developer requirements
• to evaluate the current 'core hotel zone' and associated policies in the Local Plan, including proposed policies for permitting conversion out of hospitality operations.

Economic impact of tourism
This is a study carried out annually calculating the value and volume of tourism to the city. Many businesses in the city contribute to this study by providing information about occupancy and footfall. To access the Economic Impact Assessment for 2005 click here.

Enquirer research
We will embark on a research project in 2007 to find out more about the profiles of Brighton's current and potential visitors. By utilising postcode information we can classify every client according to his or her home address. The entire UK population can be classified into 11 broad groups and further refined into 61 descriptive types. This type of research allows us to gain a better understanding of who our clients and potential visitors are, so we can develop products and services to meet their needs.

Other useful sites to check out for sources of tourism information and research are:

www.tourismknowledge.com - a good site with a lot of background on the sector as well as current issues.

www.businesstourismpartnership.com - everything you ever wanted to know about the conference, exhibition, meetings and incentive markets.

www.staruk.org.uk - main site for national tourism research.