Today, as part of his signing-in speech, newly re-elected Mayor of London Sadiq Khan announced plans for London’s biggest ever domestic tourism campaign, “Let’s Do London”. The campaign will feature a year-long programme designed to get Central London’s economy restarted in the wake of the pandemic, by bringing back the visitors that will ensure the continuing success of London’s unrivalled culture and hospitality sectors.
South Bank BID, along with levy payers including Merlin Entertainments and Park Plaza Hotels, have been central to the development of the campaign, with Chief Executive Nic Durston sitting on the London Tourism Recovery Board, providing industry insight into its development, on behalf of our businesses. The BID’s involvement and our Board’s commitment to invest in this recovery programme ensures that South Bank will be featured as a key destination for visitors looking to return to London, and that we will form an important part of ongoing recovery events and experiences.
The “Let’s Do London” Campaign will celebrate London’s unrivalled culture, hospitality, retail and visitor experiences. Central to the campaign will be a major TV advertising programme, created by leading creative agency and South Bank BID levy payer Wavemaker. In total, the Mayor has allocated £6M to support the campaign across tourism, transport and business, with a further £1m in funding from industry partners, including South Bank BID.
Nic Durston, South Bank BID Chief Executive, commented: “We’re delighted to be an integral part of this vital campaign, which will bring visitors from across the UK and London itself back to South Bank to experience once again our famous attractions, world-class cultural venues and incredible range of bars, restaurants, retailers and street food markets. This is a part of a commitment to get people back to central London and to re-experience it in a unique way, without international tourism crowds, who are unlikely to return until 2022. We’ll be sharing developments throughout the year with our businesses, as well as promoting South Bank specifically through our own destination marketing channels, to complement this campaign. We can’t wait to get going and look forward to seeing people safely back in South Bank, making the most of our incredible neighbourhood, throughout this summer and beyond.”
