£30k Marketing Prize to be won for NI’s ‘Best’ Small Visitor Attraction

Airport partners with Tourism NI and Newry, Mourne and Down District Council for competition to celebrate region’s lesser known attractions and experiences 

George Best Belfast City Airport has partnered with Tourism NI and all eleven Councils in Northern Ireland to launch the search for Northern Ireland’s Best Small Visitor Attraction – with £30,000 of free marketing support and brand visibility at the airport on offer to the winner.

The competition is open to visitor attractions and experiences across Northern Ireland that have an annual footfall of less than 100,000. The prize will include £20,000 of branding on site at Belfast City Airport which welcomes approximately 2.6m passengers each year, and £10,000 of online support through the airport’s digital channels.

To take part in the competition, attractions should submit their entries via email to Naomi@lighthouseni.com by Friday 1 March 2019, with the relevant Council then selecting a shortlist of three attractions to progress to the next stage of the competition. 

The chosen attractions will then feature on the airport’s Facebook page, with the most popular from each council progressing to the final which will see a judging panel visit, experience and score each of the attractions. 

Newry, Mourne and Down District Council Chairman, Councillor Mark Murnin said:

“Newry, Mourne and Down District Council is pleased to be a partner with George Best City Airport and Tourism NI in the search for Northern Ireland’s Best Small Visitor Attraction.

“The district has benefited from a sustained increase to spending in the area which rose by 47% to £90m in 2017. We have no doubt small visitor attractions and experiences have been an important factor in spend within the district.

“The Council will be encouraging all small visitor attractions and experiences to take part in this exciting competition. The prize would make a significant impact on a small attraction’s profile.”

Katy Best, Commercial Director at Belfast City Airport, commented:

“In 2017 we ran a hugely successful competition with Food NI to launch the search for Northern Ireland’s Best Food or Drink Product. County Armagh’s Long Meadow Cider won the title and benefited hugely from significant presence in the airport and on our digital channels.

“The smaller visitor attractions and experiences are hugely important to the overall tourism industry here in Northern Ireland and that is why they were chosen as the focus of this year’s campaign. The competition gives these attractions a chance to shine and to boost their visibility amongst a huge audience of potential local and overseas visitors.

“With 2.6m passengers using the airport each year, this is a perfect platform to promote these attractions across our extensive range of advertising formats that target a variety of demographics including both inbound and outbound passengers.

“We are really pleased to be working with Tourism NI and all eleven local Councils to raise the profile of some of Northern Ireland’s smaller and lesser known attractions and would encourage all establishments with a tourism offering and an annual footfall of less than 100,000 to consider entering.”

The £20,000 of free advertising on offer at the airport will be on a number of formats within the terminal, while the £10,000 of digital support will include activities such as email solus campaigns and social media take overs. 

Tourism NI’s Chief Executive, John McGrillen, said:

“We are thrilled to have partnered with Belfast City Airport for what I’m sure will be a very successful initiative.

“This is a superb opportunity for the smaller attractions in Northern Ireland that most likely don’t have extensive marketing budgets.

“Our focus is on encouraging visitors to extend their stay in the region, and this competition should raise awareness of the huge choice of attractions and experiences visitors have when they arrive in Northern Ireland.

“£30,000 of advertising at Belfast City Airport will have a significant impact for the winning attraction and I would encourage all attractions with an annual footfall of less than 100,000 to apply.”

For more information on how to enter, terms and conditions and to download an entry form, please visit www.belfastcityairport.com/TourismNI

Belfast City Airport can also be found on Facebook (George Best Belfast City Airport) and Twitter (@BelfastCity_Air).