The Glastonbury Festival and the Bath area’s vibrant cultural scene add nearly £300m a year to the regional economy, a major new report out today shows.
The study by industry body UK Music shows more than 772,000 visitors came to the South West last year specifically to attend live music events.
These visitors generated £297m for the regional economy through ticket sales, accommodation, food and drink and other spending – in turn sustaining nearly 2,750 full-time local jobs. 
And it is not just UK tourists who make a beeline to the region for its cultural events – according to the research, the South West is also a magnet for overseas music fans who spend on average £910 each in the region per visit.
The report, called Wish You Were Here 2015, is one of the first to demonstrate the value of live music and music tourism to the region through live concerts and festivals and the huge boost they bring to it both culturally and economically.
The region has a huge advantage over other parts of the UK as the home to the iconic Glastonbury Festival. Now the world’s most-famous event of its kind, it has been staged on the Eavis family’s Worthy Farm at Pilton, Somerset, on and off since 1970 when 1,500 people paid £1 each to listen to Marc Bolan among others.
This year all 135,000 tickets – priced at £220 each – sold out in 25 minutes when they became available last October.
The region is also home to an eclectic mix of festivals from Womad – the annual world music and dance gathering launched by Box-based musician Peter Gabriel – to a string of smaller events in Bath spanning genres from jazz to classical as well as cultural events like Frome Festival.
UK Music chief executive Jo Dipple said: “Our rich music heritage and infrastructure has made the UK the go-to destination for live music globally and these statistics show that tourism is now a bedrock of British music and the wider economy.”
Culture Secretary John Whittingdale said festivals like Glastonbury were one of the reasons why international tourism was booming in the UK.
“We know our UK creative industries contribute an astonishing £76.9bn to the UK economy but this report confirms they are truly world-class and a powerful advert for the UK,” he said.
Local MPs also welcomed the report as demonstrating to a wider audience what many in the area have known for years – that its music and culture have a huge impact on the economy and also generate spin-off benefits for other sectors.
Wells MP James Heappey said: “It is fantastic that Somerset plays host to – what is without a doubt – the greatest musical festival in the world, a gargantuan of art, music, culture and performance, a festival which draws in crowds from countries all across the world to this beautiful part of the south-west.
“The Glastonbury Festival has always championed our local area, from using local produce, to supporting local charities, and a year round commitment to the wider community. For one week each summer, Glastonbury is the centre of the musical universe, bringing huge economic benefits to Somerset. However, even after the stages have cleared away, and the fields are full of cows rather than tents, our area remains a magnet for music lovers with obvious advantages for the local tourist industry.”
UK Music is an umbrella organisation representing the UK commercial music industry – from artists, musicians, songwriters and composers, to record labels, music managers, music publishers, studio producers, music licensing organisations and the live music industry.
