Hampshire County Council Tourism Section

The Tourism Section is part of the Recreation and Heritage department within Hampshire County Council. We work closely with all local authorities in Hampshire and Tourism South East, the regional tourist board, to help ensure that tourism is supported throughout the county.

The role of the Tourism section

• To generate jobs and creates business opportunities
• Diversifies and supports the local economy
• Offers a rewarding experience for the visitor and creates a positive image of the county
• Adds to the variety of local life and widens opportunities for culture and recreation

Hampshire is the most visited county in the South East

• £1.85bn is estimated to have been spent by day and staying visitors in Hampshire in 2004
• The total value to the Hampshire economy, when including induced expenditure, was £2.72bn in 2004
• In 2007 between 50,200 and 61,000 actual jobs (including part-time and seasonal and depending on definition) are supported by tourism in Hampshire, representing between 6.7% and 7.7% of the county’s total employment
• Over 6.5% of the Gross Value Added (GVA) to the Hampshire economy (£28.3bn, 2004) can be attributed to day and staying visitors (£1.85bn, 2004)
• Portsmouth Historic Dockyard won England’s ‘Large Visitor Attraction of the Year’ in the Enjoy England Excellence Awards in 2005.
• Winchester Tourist Information Centre won 'Tourist Information Centre of the Year' in the national Enjoy England Awards for Excellence 2006

The County Council is also actively involved in encouraging appropriate hotel investment in Hampshire and identifying tourism trends within the county over time.

These pages provide industry information about tourism in Hampshire, suitable for tourism businesses and potential investors, press, travel trade and students.