Hilton signs up to £100m VisitBritain marketing campaign

16-Jun-2011 - Last updated on 26-Apr-2021 at 15:06 GMT

The VisitBritain programme will showcase the best of Britain and its upcoming events

Hilton Worldwide has become a founding partner in VisitBritain’s £100m tourism marketing programme, which aims to attract an additional four million overseas visitors to the UK.

The campaign, centralised on the theme ‘You’re Invited’, will encourage travellers from VisitBritain’s priority markets to discover the many high profile events Britain has to offer over the next few years, including the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and the 2012 Olympic Games.

Hilton Worldwide will work alongside VisitBritain on a multi-channel marketing, sales and public relations campaign for an initial two-year period.

Simon Vincent, area president Europe, Hilton Worldwide, said: "Great Britain is one of the world's outstanding destinations, for both business and leisure travel, and we are proud to be working alongside the Government in showcasing this to the world. Together we share an incredibly rich heritage, exceptional experiences, wonderful locations and people that know true hospitality."

The group, which operates 90 hotels in the UK across various brands, also joins Radisson Edwardian and a variety of other private sector companies including American Express, EasyJet, British Airways, Wimbledon, P&O Ferries, DFDS Ferries and Lastminute.com as founding partner of the campaign.

Together the organisations aim to increase visitor spend in the UK by £2bn.

John Penrose MP, Minister forTourism, said: "Hilton Worldwide's support for our marketing campaign to promote Great Britain as one of the very best destinations for holiday and business travellers is well-timed.

“The next couple of years will see this country front and centre on the world stage as never before. Companies with a global presence and reputation will make a huge difference to the campaign and we are delighted to have them on board."

Further support sought

While Hilton’s collaboration completes the final line-up of founding partners for the campaign, VisitBritain is also looking to bring on board additional hospitality businesses throughout the course of the programme.

“We hope these names will motivate other companies to come on board,” a VisitBritain spokesperson said.

Hilton Worldwide’s involvement with the campaign is for an undisclosed sum of cash and value-in-kind.