Snow in Northern Virginia

Managed to get to Warrenton, VA after hours of delays, appalling customer service from Air France rescued only by one of their employees who went above and beyond the call of duty and managed to get us out of the UK with BA via Heathrow after an inch of snow paralysed Charles de Gaulle airport. When we did arrive, we hit the most severe snowstorm to hit the DC area this decade - already had more than a foot of snow in the 15 hours since we arrived with another 10 to 12 inches forecast before nightfall. This lunchtime we toook the neighbour's Jack Russell for a walk/ bound through the snow - she loved it although struggled seeing where to go! Dressed the Christmas tree whilst listening to Elvis' Christmas songs and drinking cream sherry! Have just cleared the drive so we can get out for more beer if necessary, although still stuck until the Highways crew come and clear the road outside. Photos to follow of the winter wonderland. Merry Christmas everyone

Cultural tourism in Cyprus

Am about to head off to Cyprus for a few days to scope out a major cultural tourism project that will link community heritage projects across the Eastern Mediterranean - Jordan, Egypt also involved in Phase 1 and hopefully Syria and Lebanon coming on board for Phase 2. Will post more on my return.

Advancing Sustainable Tourism at Cultural and Natural Heritage Sites, Dunhuang, China, September 2009. Workshop Report

The workshop Advancing Sustainable Tourism at Cultural and Natural Heritage Sites took place in Dunhuang, China in late September 2009. More than 130 delegates from 25+ countries attended four days of presentations, discussions and site visits at the Mogao Grottoes WHS, hosted by the Dunhuang Academy and their partners the Getty Conservation Institute and the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts.

The venue was selected partly to demonstrate the growing challenges facing heritage sites in China. The grottoes, a World Heritage Site, currently attract more than 500,000 visitors per annum (90% Chinese nationals, 10% international visitors) yet only 15 years ago they received only 10% of this number. The Mogao Grottoes are a ‘unique repository of a thousand years of Buddhist wall paintings and sculptures’ and were amongst the first Chinese sites to be placed on the World Heritage List. A ten year partnership between the Dunhuang Academy, which manages the site, and the Getty Conservation institute, has pushed forward technical understanding of conserving wall paintings in arid environments. Sophisticated monitoring procedures have informed the preparation of a scientifically-based management plan for the site that addresses the opportunities and threats posed by increasing levels of tourism at this fragile destination.

As well as celebrating the decade of international cooperation in conservation and visitor management at Mogao Grottoes, the workshop also progressed the work of the World Heritage Sustainable Tourism Initiative (WHSTI). A key outcome of the workshop was the development of recommendations for amendments to the World Heritage Operational Guidelines so that best practice in tourism management can be incorporated into the management processes of the World Heritage Convention. Following endorsement of the process at the June 2009 meeting of the World Heritage Committee (33COM) in Seville, these amendments will be submitted to the June 2010 meeting (34COM).

The workshop also reviewed the emerging Principles for Sustainable World Heritage Tourism that support the proposed amendments to the Operational Guidelines. Thus the presentations at the workshop illustrated and analysed, through case studies, many of the key points associated with the responsible development and management at World Heritage Sites. Four main themes underpinned the workshop:

· Planning for sustainable tourism at heritage sites

· Working with the tourism sector

· Managing the tourist experience on site

· Maximising community benefits

Copies of many of the presentations are available on the website of the Australian Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. Highlights to my mind included a wonderful presentation by the managers of Port Arthur Historic Site in Tasmania that looked at market segmentation and satisfying the needs of very different audiences on one site, Sharon Sullivan’s exposition of values-based management for heritage sites and a paper by two Guatemalan conservation professionals looking at the integration of spiritual values into site and landscape management. A link to the papers should be available to ICOMOS members from Leanne Burrows (Leanne.Burrows@environment.gov.au). A draft of the revised Principles for Sustainable World Heritage Tourism is available from Graham Brooks (grahamlesliebrooks@hotmail.com), Chair of the ICOMOS International Cultural Tourism Committee. Alternatively, I can supply a copy of the Draft Principles (drsimonwoodward@hotmail.com) .

World Travel Market

Just back from a really good couple of days at WTM in London. Met old friends, made new contacts and enjoyed some excellent presentations. I particularly enjoyed Andres Calderon's paper on cultural heritage and tourism in Peru and also David Souden's presentation on the work of Historic Royal Palaces here in the UK.

At the end of the session I was chairing it became clearer than ever that responsible tourism at heritage sites needs a true and transparent partnership between heritage and tourism professionals as well as with host communities, and that every project needs a champion.

Will post links to all the papers when they are online.

Cycle tourism in Northumberland

One of the very best ways to appreciate the fabulous landscapes of Northumberland has to be on two wheels – the kind you pedal yourself! Cycling along the country lanes, taking in the views of woodlands, heather-clad moors and fields of sheep and cattle, you’re reminded everywhere of the rich heritage of the ancient kingdom of Northumbria. And with a wealth of archaeological and historical sites to visit, not to mention picturesque villages and great pubs and cafés, there’s always an excuse to get off the bike and take a break from the saddle.

The International Centre for Responsible Tourism (ICRT), from Leeds Metropolitan University, is working with the Glendale Gateway Trust, the Haltwhistle Partnership and other partners to develop cycling around the market towns of Wooler and Haltwhistle. The project is funded through the Market Town Welcome Programme as part of the Rural Development Programme England (RDPE) by Northumberland County Council on behalf of ONE NorthEast. The Market Town Welcome Programme in Northumberland is helping key towns to achieve their full potential as tourist destinations and prioritise investment in improvements to the towns’ attractions and facilities.

Over the next 18 months you’ll see exciting routes being developed for all abilities – from mountain-bike trails and challenging day rides to gentle ‘softie’ circuits. Of course, there’ll be support services too, such as cycle hire and repair shops. The two ‘hubs’ of Haltwhistle and Wooler will be the first focal points of Northumberland’s new cycle tourism venture – after that, we expect that other market towns in the region will join in to establish Northumberland as one of the UK’s leading cycling destinations.

Keen cyclist Anna Waddilove will be carrying out much of the work from a base in Hexham. A graduate of ICRT’s Responsible Tourism Management programme and a former employee of Sustrans, Anna is new to Northumberland and brings a fresh perspective to the area – perfect for understanding what visitors want! After her first few weeks in the area, Anna says “I’ve fallen in love with Northumberland already! Stunning scenery, quiet roads, fantastic light - and even the weather’s been not half bad …so far! It all feels so peaceful and remote yet you’re never more than an hour and a half from Newcastle. Perfect cycling country, with bucketfuls of added interest.” Meanwhile, the other members of the team – Simon Woodward and Janet Cochrane – have known Northumberland since childhood and formed a deep affection for its glorious scenery and romantic history which they’re looking forward to sharing with others.

Anna has already started mobilising local tourism and cycling interests to work together to make the area as cycle-friendly as possible. Early on, she’ll be trying out new routes and encouraging accommodation owners and other tourism businesses to participate in the ‘Cyclists Welcome’ scheme and to offer local produce on their menus – so don’t be surprised if you find her in your local tea-room sampling the area’s finest food and drink!

To learn more about the cycle hubs project – whether you’re a local resident, a keen or novice cyclist, a local business interested in what the project can offer for you, or any other interested party – come along to one of the public meetings for a presentation and informal chat.

Timing: 7pm for 7.30pm – 8.30pm (approx.)

Monday 23^rd November - Main Hall, Cheviot Centre, Padgepool Place, Wooler.

Tuesday 24^th November – Garden Suite, Centre of Britain Hotel, Main Street, Haltwhistle.

Finding the ’spirit of place’

I have just returned from EuroCHRIE in Helsinki, where I was delivering a paper on the role of visitor centres in helping people capture the ‘spirit of place’. Helsinki is a wonderful city whose architecture illustrates clearly the highs and lows on Finnish history. For 100 years Finland was part of the Russian Empire and there is evidence of this in the statue of Tsar Nicholas in the cathedral square, the Tsarist eagle sculpture overlooking the harbour, and the nearby Orthodox cathedral of Uspensky.

The move towards independence (which came in 1917) stimulated a flowering of creativity in all the arts, illustrated partly by the wealth of ‘Jugendstil’ houses in the city centre and by the mighty edifice of the National Museum, built to celebrate every aspect of Finnish culture. And the vision of later 20^th century Finnish architects can be seen in the Finlandia Concert Hall and the interior of the Academic Bookstore on Esplanaadi.

We sometimes forget, as we walk round cities, that the buildings around us aren’t just functional expressions of a client’s brief, but an attempt by the architect to share this vision and to enhance the world we live in. Next time you walk down Park Row to Leeds Station, look up and around, and marvel!

IoB Presidential Medal

Back from London where, amidst all the meetings, I was able to see Mum & Dad being presented with the Institute of Biology's Presidential Medal for Services to Biological Sciences - v. proud son!

Services to Biology!

Off to London tomorrow for a day of meetings (Saudi Embassy, Historic Royal Palaces, Defra) before ending up at the Institute of Biology to see my parents being presented with the IoB Gold Medal for services to science. I am very proud that they have carried on sitting on IoB national and regional committees, organising school science competitions for IoB and BAAS and supporting science education for the 20 years+ since they both retired. I hope that I have the same level of energy and commitment come 2026 when it is my time to formally 'retire'.

Mogao caves, Dunhuang

Am back from the Mogao workshop organised by the Getty Conservation Institute, China's SACH and Australia's Department of Environment, Water, Heritage & the Arts. Amazing place, very constructive discussions on managing tourism responsibly at heritage sites and some good contacts made. Photos and more news follow.

Back to school!

I have spent the last three days back in the classroom, starting my own part-time course of study. I have been encouraged by my Faculty to start a Post-Grad Certificate in Higher Education, with the expectation that over the next year I will learn things that will enhance the quality of teaching I (and colleagues) offer our MSc Responsible Tourism Management students at ICRT, Leeds Met.

Forget the year - already I've picked up a number of tips and ideas that I propose to use in the coming weeks - tomorrow at the Catholic University in Leuven, Belgium, next weekend at Dunhuang Academy in China and in early October in workshops with my former colleagues at the Supreme Commission for Tourism and Antiquities in Saudi Arabia.

I guess like many of us I am wedded to PowerPoint, and a presentation this morning gave me some comfort that it is possible to talk to people without the comfort of four or five bullet points on a screen behind you. And who would have thought that Post-its had so many uses!

As I get into the course, I will of course be reading about, thinking about and discussing with colleagues a wide range of issues surrounding the delivery of higher education. I will of course share pearls of wisdom as and when appropriate, but only when I've submitted my essays!

Pets or companion animals?

No matter how you refer to them, they are part of your life and my wife and I are grieving for the loss of our beautiful labrador Sephie, who was put to sleep yesterday at the age of 82 (dog years). Together with her brother Paris, we miss her terribly. When we get her ashes returned, we'll take scatter them on her favourite beach where she spent hours and hours chasing tennis balls, bounding through the waves and barking at the seagulls. Bye bye sweet thing

Responsible Tourism

Two great articles in today's Observer newspaper - one in the colour supplement looking at conflicts between tourism development and traditional Masai lifestyles in Kenya, the other in the main paper looking at the threats tourism brings to fragile World Heritage Sites and including a short interview with ICRT's very own Xavier Font!

Looking back

Hilary and I celebrate our 22nd wedding anniversary tomorrow, and (I think) we are both looking forward to turning 50 in the coming months. Time is, inexorably, moving on.

Last weekend we went up to Northumberland to join one of our oldest friends at a party to celebrate her 50th. As well as seeing Karin, we also caught up with a couple of other friends - Michael and Judith - who we have also known for more than 4 decades.

As we chatted over a beer or two in the wonderful microbrewery at Matfen, just off Hadrian' Wall (http://www.highhousefarmbrewery.co.uk/), we reminisced over things that happened as we were growing up in Durham in the 1970s: favourite teachers (Mr Young for Geography, Mr Watson for Physics), great parties (199 Gilesgate in particular), the 4th year school trip to Paris, gigs (Focus at the Mayfair in Newcastle, Domefest http://www.ukrockfestivals.com/durham-dome-festival-1973.html ), former boyfriends and girlfriends. Of course we talked about other things - careers, holidays, children, the achievements of some of our classmates (one climbed Everest a couple of years ago, another recently released his second CD of ragtime and blues guitar) - but we kept going back to our teenage years in particular.

Driving home to Scarborough that evening I started wondering why it is that I still identify so much with the North East of England, despite not having lived there since 1978. I have been lucky in recent years that my consultancy work often takes me to the area, and my position on the Dean's Development Committee at Durham Cathedral means I get to return every couple of months to the ecclesiastical (and former political) heart of the region. And of course we still have family in the city itself.

Perhaps one never fully leaves the place where one has those first, life-forming experiences. I certainly still feel an afinity with the region, its cultural heritage, landscapes and buildings that surpassess anything I feel for other parts of the world I've lived in and visited. And every autumn (and although it's only the 4th September it already feels like autumn) I dig out my old Lindisfarne, Arbre and Jack the Lad albums - there is something comforting about listening to music that has a strong regional identity when the wind is howling and the rain is lashing against the window. What confuses me though is that my family has no roots in the region at all - one side is from the Midlands, the other from London and Norfolk. And keep it under your hat, but I was actually born in Windsor. I only moved to Durham when I was six years old, and by then I had also lived in York and Glasgow.

So what is it that has made me feel this way? A former colleague at Frontline - a weegie in fact - once asked me if I was proud to be English, as he sure as hell was proud to be a Scot. I remember telling Iain at the time that I didn't think of myself as being English at all, but that I was proud to be from the North East, and that being a Geordie was good enough for me. I still feel that way. I have pride in my region: where it has come from; what is has given the world and what it continues to do.

And so back to tomorrow, and our 22nd wedding anniversary. We're off to a restaurant that serves the best food that North Yorkshire can offer (http://www.thestaratharome.co.uk/star_welcome.htm) and that, like High House Farm Brewery in Matfen, provides a great example of how good quality tourism facilities can stimulate local economic development. It's a shame its 30 or so miles outside County Durham's boundary, but I suppose God's own country can't have everything!

Responsible tourism in the Scottish islands?

Hilary and I recently had a wonderful week’s holiday at Gribun on the Isle of Mull, a small island off the west coast of Scotland. Staying with friends in a small cottage (http://www.mull.zynet.co.uk/bacca/) overlooking Loch Na Keal, we had plenty of time to explore the island and visit a wide range of tourist businesses.

I was particularly impressed by the 3-year old mature cheddar available at the creamery near Tobermory, the wonderful food in the Fish Cafe in the old CalMac building on the harbour in Tobermory itself (Balamory to our younger readers) and the tweed jackets and wraps (see picture) made from Hebridean wool and available only at a small weavers shop on a farm at Ardalanish on the south-western corner of the island. The small sculpture park in the woods above Calgary Bay and of course the Abbey on Iona were other highlights.

Almost every business we came across tried its best to use locally-sourced materials or produce, a lot of restaurants and cafes featured organic foods and there were several examples of businesses, such as the Glengorm Estate (http://www.glengormcastle.co.uk/) participating in the Green Tourism Business Scheme (http://www.green-business.co.uk/) – the UK’s national sustainable tourism certification scheme, and a project for which I prepared the feasibility study back in the mid-1990s.

In almost every sense, one could feel that the Isle of Mull is a perfect example of a destination that has fully embraced the principles of responsible tourism. Yet there was a niggling doubt at the back of my mind during the whole holiday and it came to the forefront when I finally realised that with the exception of the crews on the Lochaline and Iona ferries and the weavers at Ardalanish, I barely heard a Scots accent during the whole week.

Most of the shop staff in Tobermory were Polish, the majority of people we met in the Iona Community seemed to be English or American and our bread-making neighbour was Dutch! So has tourism really given rise to a fresh wave of clearances, as Capercaillie suggest in their song “Waiting for the Wheel to Turn” (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EIK8ChDeWAw)? Have we created another dislocated society just to satisfy our desire for a rural, ‘cultured’ tourism destination? Answers on a postcard please.........

P.S. Whilst away I read Calum's Road, the true story of how one man fought single-handedly to improve access to his small community on the island of Raasay. This inspirational book by Roger Hutchinson is well worth reading, not least because it shows how successive local, regional and national governments have carried on, well into the late 20th century, the clearances initiated by the lairds and sheep farmers in the 19th century.

In print at last!

I'm feeling pretty pleased with myself this at present - yesterday I got hold of a copy of the Sage Handbook of Tourism Studies, edited by Tazim Jamal and my colleague Prof Mike Robinson. There between pages 314 and 332 is my first ever book chapter, co-authored with Aylin Orbasli, one of the UK's top historic town specialists. We started writing the chapter more than two years ago, but the book has only just been published .

http://www.sagepub.com/booksProdDesc.nav?prodId=Book229423&

Whilst this time lag of two years may be standard in academic publishing circles, I can't help but think of the historic buildings that we will have lost during that time because of a lack of investment or planning.

In particular, I am thinking of the wonderful buildings built of mangabe - fossil coral - in Yanbu Al Bahr, a small port on Saudi Arabia's Red Sea Coast. Dr Orbasli and I spent two years leading a team on the preparation of a masterplan for the protection, conservation and regeneration of the Al Sur district in Yanbu. Even during the study, buildings were collapsing or being demolished because the authorities thought they were unsafe. We submitted the final masterplan in January 2008 and a colleague who recently visited the area has told me that more buildings have collapsed in the last few months, and that there is no evidence at all of any investment in the site.

So even if our consultancy reports sometimes fall on deaf ears, I hope that students who read our contribution in the new Sage textbook are able to carry on the message that tourism development can deliver real benefits for heritage conservation.

Tourism and Poverty Reduction

Just back from a few days in Fes where I am working with AECOM (based in DC) and a team from the local university on a major study looking at opportunities for developing a 5 ha site at Bab Makina for tourism uses that will deliver real benefits to the surrounding community.

Fes currently receives around 350,000 international visitors per annum, a small proportion of the 7 million + tourists visiting Morocco each year. The key attraction is the historic medina, home to more than 125,000 people including thousands of artisans and craftsmen. The tanneries at Chouwarra (pictured left) are a highlight of any tour of the medina, but most tourists spend their time bartering with retailers so that they can get the biggest bang for their buck/ euro/ pound.

We tend to assume that trying to drive the price down through bargaining is part of the fun for both parties, but when the sums involved are very modest in real terms, who are we actually kidding? The average wage of an artisan working in the medina is around $100 per month, around 5% of the average wage in the UK for instance.

Earlier this week the UNWTO launched a major campaign urging the tourism sector to be more aware of the opportunities that exist for combating urban and rural poverty through the adoption of more responsible behaviour and attitudes. http://www.unwto.org/media/news/en/press_det.php?id=4331&idioma=E

The International Centre for Responsible Tourism at Leeds Met University has been working with UNWTO and other partners on pro-poor tourism for several years. For more information on our consultancy and training services, look at www.icrtourism.org or call +44 113 812 5880

Eco-nuns - marvellous

This is an inspiring story although I imagine they left their Victorian Abbey with regret.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/northyorkshire/content/articles/2009/05/20/eco_nuns_abbey_feature.shtml

It has left me wondering about whether there is a project somewhere to 'green up' the church in general

Protecting neolithic heritage in Malta

There are many approaches to protecting fragile archaeological sites. Here in Malta, instead of reburying excavated sites with sand, they are installing a multi-million dollar tented roof which will mean the site remains accessible to the public whilst, at the same time, the worst of the wind and spray will be avoided. Having said that, the reporter does say that the site is still very unstable so I'm not sure if I'll be visiting just yet!

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8054873.stm

Who pays to preserve shared ecclesiastical heritage?

On the walls of a ruined church in Northern Spain are some very fragile paintings depicting the murder of Thomas Becket. Now in the ownership of the local authority, they represent an exceptionally rare example of medieval art. Unfortunately, the local council doesn't have the resources to properly conserve the paintings and so the usual shout has gone out 'we need more tourism' so that they can raise the income to stabilise the ruins and employ proper conservators. Becket is a member of the Canon of Saints of the Catholic Church and as a former Archbishop of Canterbury, is also venerated within the Anglican church. So should there be financial support for the town of Soria from these bodies. How can we support one of the poorest Provinces in Spain to protect and then benefit from these unique works of art?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/8029320.stm

Five Days, Fifty Ways to Make Tourism More Responsible

Next week sees an important online conference where delegates can debate the current state and future of responsible tourism. Between 18th and 22nd May, anyone can engage with the debate by accessing:

http://planeta.wikispaces.com/responsibletourism

and

http://www.artyforum.info/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=170&PID=212#212

Get involved!!!!

English Heritage and Stonehenge - finally a decision

AT LAST!!!!!

http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/server/show/ConWebDoc.16383

Paying for conservation

The attached article is interesting - shows how we are beginning to ask our communities to take a greater role in funding conservation works in our National Parks.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/north_yorkshire/8042863.stm

It will be interesting to see how they fare at a time when household budgets are being squeezed. Although, with a bumper year for UK tourism predicted, a carefully targeted scheme could tap into not just community interest, but also the pockets of the many people who visit the Parks each year.

Whether or not the funds raised will make a real difference remains to be seen. But then again, every little helps!

An early morning walk through the cemetery!

The dogs are obviously operating on Berlin time as they are waking up at around 5 am these days. This morning I couldn't get back to sleep after letting them out for their first comfort break of the day, so got up and decided to take the early train to work. Walking through the Victorian cemetery that lies between home and the station at 6 am, I could barely hear myself think because of the cacaphony coming from the trees and bushes - this really was a dawn chorus to remember. It reminded me of the incredible wildlife value of some of our historic graveyards - an aspect that is often forgotten by those of us who live busy lives, rushing from place to place and rarely taking the time to stop, look, listen and celebrate the ordinary.

Fortunately, there are some community groups who are beginning to take an interest in managing historic graveyards for both their cultural and natural heritage interest. In York there is a long established group who run education programmes for local schools using the city's graveyards as a resource to teach lessons on, for instance, biology or local history (the Victorians - a classic topic at Key Stage 2 in English schools). And in Bradford, moves are afoot to encourage much more public engagement with the city's fine Undercliffe Cemetery.

So next time you are passing a graveyard, pop in and see what you can learn!

Heritage and Contemporary Culture in Jordan

Jordan’s rich heritage includes sites associated with, amongst other cultures, the Nabateans, Romans, Ummayids, Byzantines and Ottomans, as well as some of the most important locations associated with the region’s three monotheistic religions – Christianity, Judaism and Islam.

Seeing how these sites are being packaged, presented and managed for Jordan’s growing tourism sector has been particularly instructive in terms of reminding me of the plurality of interests that exist in almost every tourist destination and the opportunities that exist for telling multi-layered stories. Whereas the Nabatean heritage of Petra normally grabs the headlines, the Roman ruins are every bit as interesting (if not as monumental). Whilst the Roman ruins at Jerash may match the spectacle of Petra, their more recent function as a home for Circassian migrants to the region brings with it additional interest.

And the castle in Azraq, home for a few months to Lawrence before his final push on Damascus, was subsequently settled by Chechens fleeing persecution in their part of the world.


Yet whilst the two weeks I have just spent in Jordan on holiday and then on university business have provided me with a much greater understanding of the country’s cultural heritage, I found it difficult to gain an insight into contemporary Jordanian culture. Jordan’s population has been increased in recent decades by an influx of Circassians and Druze, two waves of Palestinian refugees and, more recently, more than a million displaced Iraqis. Inevitably, these socio-political factors are influencing Jordanian society even today. But where does the tourist go to, to understand the human environment they circumnavigate as they travel from ruin to museum? How can we interact more fruitfully with our hosts so that we understand their way of life as deeply as we are able to gain knowledge about that of their ancestors? Are two pages in a Rough Guide or Lonely Planet really enough?

Host:Guest relationships (or, stupid insensitive tourists!)

One of the topics we teach our MSc Responsible Tourism Management students concerns the relationships between hosts and guests in destinations. Based on social anthropology, students gain an understanding of the misunderstandings that can arise when two very different cultures come into contact with one another. The purpose is of course to see how we can develop a more responsible and sensitive approach to tourism development, particularly in developing destinations.

I really wish that we had access to this photo essay when we were teaching the other weekend - it really puts all our work into some kind of perspective! So click on the link, sit back and be amazed. I still don't know whether to laugh or cry!

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/picturegalleries/5005019/20-ridiculous-complaints-made-by-holidaymakers.html

National Trust for Scotland to close some properties

Sad news from Edinburgh the other day, with NTS announcing that it is closing some of its properties, reducing opening hours and cutting services at others. The Trust has been reviewing its operations for some time and this move appears to reflect both the higher costs of conserving, presenting and managing the properties and also the difficulties the organisation has been facing in generating sufficient revenue to fund its activities.

What is interesting is the fact that this move has been made at a time when commentators are predicting a bumper year for UK tourism, with the weak pound keeping Brits at home as well as making us more competitive to the European and US markets.

Heritage properties such as those managed by the Trust represent an important part of our tourism product, and if we as a nation cannot secure the funds necessary to keep them open on a regular basis, the experience of many will certainly be diminished.

Quality assurance scheme for school visits

Another good example of how our cultural heritage sector is upping the ante and making things as easy as possible for schools to arrange visits. Lets just hope that the costs of compliance and participation do not disadvantage the many small attractions who need this business from schools to survive.



http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7889145.stm

Accessing collections online

Some of the UK's largest museums are increasing access to their collections through a new online initiative - check out the following story on the BBC news website for more details:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/7902323.stm

Vikings in York

They really do take it very seriously, the re-enactors who entertained a crowd of several hundred in York's museum gardens this weekend. Telling the story of the revolt against the Normans in the late 11th century, a large group of hairy men (and a few women) braved the cold and damp to give a limited, but exciting, insight into warfare at that time. The annual viking fesitval in York is a great example of using a city's cultural heritage as a tool for developing tourism in the shoulder months. As well as the re-enactments, other highlights included a talk on Viking poo (always a winner with young kids) and a Viking wedding. Most bizzare sight - four Vikings, armed and ready for action, getting out of a Volkswagen people carrier - surely it should have been a Volvo!

Skyspace in Northumberland

Today's Guardian Travel Supplement offers a number of ideas on where to go in the UK this half term. One of the suggested destinations is James Turrell's 'Skyspace' at Kielder Forest in Northumberland. This is one of the most signficant pieces of public art in the UK in my opinion, and not nearly as well known as it should be. So take a trip up the A68 (OK - it's not Route 66 but it's still an attractive drive) and spend some time looking at the big Northumberland skies.

And if you can't get that far north, the same artist has constructed the Deer Shelter in the Yorkshire Sculpture Park outside Wakefield.

Enjoy!

Local galleries and the art of (re-)discovering your local area

Last Friday I was lucky enough to be invited to the opening of a new exhibition at Scarborough's South Street Gallery (www.southstreetgallery.co.uk). South Specific presents images from a number of regional artists, all of whom have been inspired by the coastline, moors and wolds of this part of North Yorkshire. Andrew Cheetham's inspired seascapes and David Chalmers' black and white photographs of Scarborough's spa buildings and sea defences highlight the appeal of the coastline even in the dark and stormy days of winter. And a trip to the gallery itself offers the perfect little trip out, particularly if combined with afternoon tea in the quirky Francis' tea rooms immediately opposite. Supporting local businesses such as these are at the heart of responsible tourism, so next time you are wondering what to do on a snowy afternoon, take a trip down a sidestreet in your home town. You may be surprised at what you find!