'Grand slam' for city's visitor economy after rise
BBCFestive events and a major darts tournament in Wolverhampton attracted tens of thousands of visitors to the city, boosting the local economy by several million, council officials said.
More than 35,000 people went to the Christmas lights switch-ons in Bilston, Wednesfield and Tettenhall with 10,000 people visiting the Victoria Street Christmas Craft Market on five dates in November.
The Lights in the Night, Lantern Parade, Fringe Festival and Christmas at Bantock events also attracted 6,500 people, the council said.
Separately, the council said 20,000 people went to the city for the Grand Slam of Darts in November which helped the local economy by £3.7m, with 1,500 more tickets sold this year.
Sports venue WV Active Aldersley hosted the darts tournament over eight days and figures for last year showed the economic benefit added up to £3.4m - estimated from PDC (Professional Darts Corporation) data.
City of Wolverhampton CouncilThe competition has been held at the venue every year since 2018, apart from 2020.
The figures follow independent data compiled by tourism research body Global Tourism Solutions in the summer which showed Wolverhampton's visitor economy grew for the second successive year in 2024.
The city attracted more than 10.4m visitors, with the visitor economy worth £506m up 10.6% from the previous year.
City of Wolverhampton CouncilCouncillor Chris Burden, cabinet member for city development, jobs and skills, said continued growth of the visitor economy was critical for the city.
The festive events are estimated to have boosted the economy by almost £2m, according to the council.
"Through our events strategy we aim to provide a rich cultural and social offering to our residents, while at the same time supporting local businesses and our other fantastic assets and venues in Wolverhampton, " he said.
"These figures for our latest events are hugely encouraging and, working with partners, we aim to help grow the city's visitor economy further."
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