Bristol’s taxi drivers are being encouraged to promote the city’s tourist destinations to visitors under a new scheme launched yesterday.
Destination Bristol, the city’s official tourism board, and Mayor George Ferguson kicked off the initiative at Brunel’s ss Great Britain at the same time as unveiling the city’s 2013 Visitor Guide.
Copies of the new guide will be given to licensed hackney cab drivers as part of a push to increase their knowledge of tourism activities and places to go in the city, and so create a greater sense of welcome for visitors coming into Bristol.
Destination Bristol is hoping to boost their awareness of the local tourism offering by enabling the city’s 1,000 hackney drivers to experience and enjoy first-hand many attractions in and around the city.
Brunel’s ss Great Britain is one of the attractions supporting the initiative along with At-Bristol and Bristol Zoo Gardens, which are offering taxi drivers and their families complimentary tickets and help guide future visitors to experience the variety of activities available in the city.
Written by Destination Bristol, designed by Bristol-based graphics firm The Group of Seven and illustrated by local artist Dawn Cooper, the free 2013 Visitor Guide highlights the rich diversity of areas in and around Bristol, detailing the many attractions, activities, shops, and places to eat and drink throughout the city region.
This is the first year in which the guide includes a ‘welcome’ page printed in five international languages, including Mandarin to communicate to the city’s growing number of Chinese visitors.
The guide is also dedicated to helping visitors discover Bristol’s creative and independent spirit which is captured throughout the city from its popular street art scene to the high number of unique, independent traders.
Some 300,000 copies of the guides are being distributed to many high visitor footfall areas within the city, as well as key visitor transport locations within a 30 minute drive of Bristol. An additional 20,000 guides will be issued through the licensed taxi drivers in the city.
Mr Ferguson said: “I want Bristol to be the most welcoming city – one that goes out of its way to open its arms to visitors, to give them a great first impression and to take care of them in a way that ensures that they extol our virtues elsewhere. This is why I have forged a close partnership with the city’s taxi drivers because they play such a vital role as ambassadors for Bristol. This excellent new guide will equip them and their passengers with a comprehensive picture of Bristol’s visitor and other attractions.”
Destination Bristol head of marketing Kelly Ballard added: “The 2013 Visitor Guide is a fantastic addition to the visitor experience in Bristol and a key tool to help position the city regionally and nationally as a top UK destination.
“Our launch of the guide among Bristol’s licensed taxi drivers is a crucial part of our aim to improve a greater sense of welcome across the city. Taxi drivers are key ambassadors who are often the first people a visitor will talk to when arriving into the city, so we’re offering these drivers a chance to visit many attractions in and around Bristol to increase their awareness of the great tourism offering we have here.”
The Official 2013 Visitor Guide is also available to download from www.visitbristol.co.uk
Pictured: Mayor George Ferguson launches the 2013 Visitor Guide at ss Great Britain
