We are proud to sponsor and have guest speakers at this year’s West Country Tourism Conference which is held at Westpoint alongside the Source Trade Show on 6 and 7 February 2024, with two ‘extended mornings’ of topical presentations. The topics and speakers are as follows:

Tuesday 6 February – Tourism priorities, excellence, accessibility and sustainability

• Amanda Winwood, Made for Life Organics – “Wellness Tourism. The Future.”
• Rosie Radwell, MD, Marsham Court Hotel – “On becoming England’s first ‘Changing Places’ hotel”
• Lyndsey Turner-Swift, Deputy England Director, VisitEngland – “National Priorities – The Year Ahead”
• Alistair Handyside, Chair, Professional Association of Self-Caterers (PASC) – “2024, A Year of Change”
• Richard Toomer, Director, The Tourism Alliance – “2024, The Changes We Seek”
• Andy Banner-Price, The 25 B&B – “The Essentials of B&B Success”
• Kris Hall and Mica Maurtua, The Burnt Chef Project – “Impact on Mental Health in the Hospitality Industry”
• Tom Ross, CEO The PIG Hotels – “The PIG, six years on”
• Andy McNulty, Touch Stay – “The Communication Guests Expect (& How It Can Drive Revenue)”
• Steven Core, VoltShare – “EV Charging for Tourism”
• Laura McFadyen and Steve Panton, Stephens Scown – “Employer Essentials in 2024 – HR and Regulatory Update”

Wednesday 7 February – Marketing, social, PR and AI

• Alastair Banks, Optix Solutions & Your Digital Future – “AI within Marketing – Beyond the Content”
• Kate Doodson, Joint CEO, Cosmic – “What’s New for Tourism in 2024”
• Amanda Lumley, CEO, Destination Plymouth – “Creating a Tourism Data Hub for the South West”
• Wendy Harris, CEO, Anytime Booking – “Travel booking trends, tips and 2024”
• Verity Slater, Stephens Scown – “The Journey to B Corp”
• Lawrence Palk and Aaron Learnihan, Wildanet – “The importance of digital connectivity in Tourism”
• Mark Worden, Director, MiHi Digital – “Encouraging repeat bookers, creating advocates and building your brand for 2024”
• Thomas Chartres-Moore, Stephens Scown -“Would you accept a booking from AI? And other head scratching questions about technology in hospitality”
• Neil Warren, Living Options Devon – “Five Ways to Attract the One in Five (Accessing the Purple Pound)”
• Hannah Morgan & Eloise Ansell, NFU Mutual – “Cybercrime and AI, How You Can Manage the Risk”
• Mark Durber and Pete Stevens, Clockwork Marketing – “Sustainable Marketing In Practice”

The Conference will start at 09:30 each day and conclude with a pasty or pie lunch at 13:30. The full programme is available here.

You can book your tickets here.