Hotels in Newcastle Gateshead busy as ever.


Hotels and attractions around NewcastleGateshead reported vast increases in visitor figures during the Tall Ships’s recent five day stay in port.

Between July 25 and July 28, 1.5m people visited The Tall Ships’ Races 2005 in NewcastleGateshead making it the largest and most successful event the region has ever staged.

In 1993 the last time The Tall Ships visited the region it was the single largest free visitor attraction that year, a feat matched by the 2005 event.

Stephen Deacon, General Manager, Copthorne Hotel Newcastle, said: “The Tall Ships Races was a fantastic event for us. The night of the eve of parade celebrations was one of the busiest we have ever had.

“We were already 85% full one month before the Tall Ships even arrived, we usually only have bookings this high just 2-3 days ahead of time.”

The BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, which was used as an operational centre by the Tall Ships’ Races organisers, also reported large increases in visitor figures. The venue saw up to 10,000 people a day visit throughout the duration of The Tall Ships’ event.

The Sage Gateshead was another quayside venue to directly benefit from the Tall Ships’ stay in port. Visitor figures for the first three days of the event hit almost 60,000, with 43,000 visiting the music venue during the eve of parade day alone.

Anthony Sargent, General Director, The Sage Gateshead “The Tall Ships really showed the value of The Sage Gateshead being right at the centre of NewcastleGateshead beside the river. We could play a full part in the festival with a great programme of short, popular sea-linked concerts and education projects, and our Café-bar with its great views proved a great place for ship-watchers to hang out and refuel with coffee or something stronger!”

Alastair Balls, Chairman, NewcastleGateshead Initiative, which was responsible for promoting The Tall Ships Races event around the region, the country and the world, said: “We always knew that the arrival of the tall ships on the Tyne was going to generate huge interest, but the fact that we attracted over half-a-million more visitors than we did in 1993 is wonderful news.

“Staging The Tall Ships’ Races on the Tyne was a marvelous achievement only made possible by the commitment and enthusiasm of many players from Newcastle City Council including the Tall Ships’ Manager, Phil Payne, Gateshead Council, the Port of Tyne Authority, One NorthEast, the emergency services and many other private sector organisations.”

John Holmes, Director of Regeneration and Tourism, One NorthEast said: "Tall Ships was yet another wonderful chance for us to shine the spotlight on NewcastleGateshead and show off to the world what we've achieved here in the last decade or so.

“The private and public sectors have worked arm in arm through the complex process of land assembly and masterplanning to transform the quayside into a fantastic place to work, play and do business.”

The event is believed to have generated an economic boost of over £50m into the local economy.

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