Kent County Show
Saturday, July 14, 2012
9:10 AM
Organisers say “show will go on” all weekend after extensive repair works to the car parks
The Kent County Show will open its gates today after emergency repair works to the car park.
Torrential rain and muddy conditions forced show organisers to turn new visitors away on Friday just three hours after opening.
Fears were the wet weather could cause further problems, but organisers confirmed today “the show would go on” today and tomorrow.
In a statement, a Kent County Show spokesman said: “Following extensive remedial work through Friday afternoon in the car parks, we are pleased to confirm the show will be open today and tomorrow.
“There was no rain on the first day which has helped considerably with our repairs and the weather outlook for the next few days is much improved.”
But they stressed that weather would be variable and urged visitors to be prepared.
“We would recommend that visitors prepare for both sun and showers.”
The three-day extravaganza – a celebration of the county’s rural roots – had to turn away all vehicles from the site at 11am on Friday after torrential rain over Thursday turned the car parks into a quagmire.
It left organisers facing a desperate battle to ready the site for the main rush of visitors expected to attend Saturday, amid mounting fears further overnight rain could cause chaos.
Just 10,000 people had reached the site before the gates shut. Organisers had estimated some 80,000 would visit the Kent Showground in Detling over the course of the weekend.
The site was still accessible by foot or by bus.
See www.kentnews.co.uk to find out the latest details on the Kent County Show.
Source: www.kentnews.co.uk
Essex: Bad weather hitting the tourism industry - East Anglian Daily Times
By Amie Keeley
Saturday, July 14, 2012
10:00 AM
THE tourism industry made heavy losses following the lengthy spell of wet weather, it is feared.
Visitor numbers for outdoor attractions in Essex are down on last year with a number of coastal businesses not expected to recoup profits for the rest of the year.
It comes after there were high hopes for a bumper summer season with major events such as the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and Olympics expected to encourage people to take “staycations” instead of travelling abroad.
Visit Essex said visitor numbers for outdoor activities were down by 8% in June compared to last year.
Spokeswoman Elli Constantatou said: “The weather has been extremely bad so obviously it does affect peoples’ movements especially to outdoor attractions. It’s beyond our control but it’s still very disappointing from our point of view. The worry is if people start to think about going abroad on holiday.”
Seaside attractions are among the worse hit. Clacton Pier owner Billy Ball said: “Business has been tough, there’s no doubt about it. The economy doesn’t help but we have been very well supported on the few days of good weather we have had, so it’s definitely more of a weather issue.
“I don’t think we will make up lost ground – bank holidays are so important to our industry and these have not been warm so there’s a negative impact. We have to try to cut our cloth accordingly and make sure our spend is monitored. These next two weeks will be very important to us.”
But it is not all bad news. Indoor attractions are thriving with visitor numbers showing a 43% increase compared to this time last year.
Colchester’s Hollytrees Museum has seen a 40% hike while the Layer Marney Tower in Maldon has seen a 85% increase in people visiting the Tudor building.
Ms Constantatou said: “Historic houses and museums are definitely seeing more people coming through their doors this season and overall, if we combine both indoor and outdoor attractions, the visitor numbers are marginally up compared to last June.”
Source: www.eadt.co.uk
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