The Tourism Management Board has given £123,000 of funding for Guernsey events and activity projects to different organisations to try and “enhance the visitor experience”.
The money is going to a variety of different events covering different interests including sport, art, history, food and more.
It’s part of a wider strategy to attract more visitors to the Bailiwick.
The confirmation of which events have received the grant money for 2025 came in the same week that it was confirmed total visitor numbers in 2024 were down 14% on the year before.
There was a 2% increase in the number of visitors who stay for at least one night, and an 11% annual increase in visitors coming over on their own boats, but a decline of 55% in cruise ship passengers, a 10% decline in day trippers overall, and a 9% reduction in long stay visitors contributed to the overall continued decrease in visitor numbers which are 34% down on 2019.
Hannah Beacom, Chair of the Tourism Management Board, said initiatives like the grant system will help encourage more visitors by offering them more to do when they’re here.
“We know our Bailiwick is beautiful and full of rich culture and heritage, and it is vital to support those projects which showcase the best it has to offer to visitors.
“We were delighted to receive so many applications for funding this year, and we look forward to seeing how the successful applicants put it to good use to boost the Bailiwick’s tourism sector.”
38 grant applications were made, with the 17 organisations receiving the funding listed above.
One of the recipients is the Guernsey Rally.
“We are absolutely delighted and extremely grateful for this grant from the Tourism Management Board,” said Caren Vidamour.
“To receive such support from Hannah Beacom and her team is very much appreciated and will be of great help to us ensuring the 2025 Guernsey Rally is a spectacular local event and enjoyed by its many supporters.”
The £123,000 comes from the Committee for Economic Development’s budget to meet its wider aims of ‘improving and enhancing the visitor experience’, ‘attracting further visitors to enjoy and make the most of our islands’, and to ‘celebrate our rich heritage, culture, food, and sporting communities’.