Destination marketing organisation Visit Bath is launching eight mini-campaigns this year to boost the city’s tourist offer and directly target different types of visitor.
The first – called Unexpected Bath – is now underway and is highlighting the quirky and more unusual side of the city. The campaign, which makes use of extensive social media, is targeting millennials and students – audiences Visit Bath has never directly targeted before.
This will be followed by Remarkable Bath, a campaign that will focus on aspects of the city’s heritage. Others, which are being kept under wraps, will follow later this year.
Visit Bath is teaming up with a number of organisations to run the campaigns, including Original Wild, a Bathampton-based adventure company that is staging paddle-boarding sessions on the River Avon through the city.
There will also be a Bath on the Beach, with an area of Victoria Park transformed into a Caribbean by the company behind the Bath On Ice skating rink, walking tours with Bizarre Bath, La Vignoble – a new wine bar concept in Milsom Place, and unusual flavoured gelato at Swoon, including charcoal vanilla.
The University of Bath has also teamed up with Visit Bath to offer student accommodation outside of term time – so lowering the price of a visit to Bath for cost-conscious millennials.
The striking and branding and images behind the campaign has been created by Bath design agency Mytton Williams.
Visit Bath chief executive David James, who launched the Unexpected Bath campaign by taking to the water for his first paddle-boarding session with Original Wild, said: “Bath is a creative and modern city, full of energy and fun things to do and we are excited to be showcasing this alternative side.
“Our marketing strategies are really focusing on celebrating the best of the history and heritage of the city as well as its modernity. We know our heritage and spas appeal to an older group of visitors, but we have so much to offer younger visitors too that doesn’t get promoted.
“This new and innovative campaign will appeal to younger visitors, and once they have experienced Unexpected Bath we are confident that they will return to the city many more times. We are also delighted that the university will be working alongside us as an accommodation partner as this is the first time we have worked with it in this way. It’s also great to see the river being used in this way.”
The Unexpected Bath campaign mirrors activity being undertaken by VisitEngland on a national level. Its research shows that what it calls ‘budget-conscious buzzseekers’ in the 16 to 34-year-old age group are taking fewer UK holidays than ever.
VisitEngland is running campaign to encourage this demographic to holiday at home rather than taking low-cost breaks abroad.
Pictured: Visit Bath chief executive David James, second left, joins the Original Wild team to launch the Unexpected Bath campaign
