Through collaboration with local stakeholders, Tourism Connect aims to promote and encourage sustainable tourism and travel within the Wales and Borders region.
The 3 Counties Community Rail Partnership will work with Destination Management Organisations (DMOs) Visit Shropshire, Visit Cheshire and This is Wrexham to identify key attractions and experiences that are easily accessible from railway stations, whether by foot, cycle or bus.
Aims
To develop a sustainable tourism ecosystem
To attract visitors to the region
To promote local attractions and destinations
To promote sustainable travel
To develop relationships with tourism partners and local stakeholders
Objectives
Attend Transport for Wales’ sustainable tourism workshop to initiate discussions with key tourism partners.
Develop an illustrative map highlighting tourism assets with the 3 Counties Connected areas connected by the railway.
Collaborate with Visit Shropshire, This is Wrexham and Marketing Cheshire to develop microsites incorporated into their respective tourism websites, which showcase ‘3 Counties By Rail’ adventures.
Partner with tourism boards for an active social media campaign to promote train travel and the attractions, activities and experiences available within the 3 Counties Connected region.
Create compelling imagery and videos to showcase the beauty and experiences of the region, emphasising the ease of accessing them by train.
Implement a PR campaign to raise awareness about the project, highlighting its objectives, benefits and the opportunities for local communities and businesses.
Conduct workshops involving local businesses and community groups to familiarise them with the illustrative map and demonstrate the possibilities for train, bus foot and bike-based visits.
Partners
Transport for Wales
Visit Shropshire
This is Wrexham
Marketing Cheshire
Lemondrop Creative
Local Businesses
Project Delivery
In collaboration with representatives from Visit Shropshire, This is Wrexham, and Marketing Cheshire, we developed a comprehensive list of attractions and visitor experiences accessible via our railway lines.
Each DMO has created a dedicated microsite, highlighting rail-accessible attractions in their respective regions, with cross-links to the other DMOs’ microsites for seamless navigation.
We partnered with Lemondrop Creative to produce a bilingual, user-friendly map, designed to be compact and convenient. These maps have been distributed to stations along the railway lines, as well as to stakeholder organizations and local businesses.
In addition to the maps, larger poster versions have been created for display at railway stations across the network.
To further promote the ‘3 Counties by Rail’ initiative, we have procured marketing materials for events, increasing visibility and engagement.
Our website has been updated with a new ‘Adventures‘ page, featuring the map, links to DMO microsites, and all listed attractions. The maps also include QR codes linking to this page, allowing us to track user interactions for further insights.
#3CountiesByRail officially launched at the beginning of the 2024 summer holidays, encouraging and inspiring rail travel. The launch coincided with Transport for Wales Big Days Out summer promotion, with deals on rail tickets for families and at selected attractions.