Cash injection for hard-pressed tourism businesses

Beleaguered tourism businesses across Northern Ireland were thrown a lifeline on Monday with the launch of a new programme that will offer them capital grants of up to £200,000.

The cash, announced by Economy Minister, Diane Dodds, has been earmarked to help boost demand among local consumers and help providers to deliver experiences that reflect Tourism NI’s Embrace a Giant Spirit campaign.

Successful applicants in the private or voluntary sectors can secure up to 80 per cent funding towards the costs of implementing improvements to their offerings. Public sector enterprises will be able to get up to 50 per cent of their costs reimbursed.

Mrs Dodds said on Monday that she believed the programme would help local tourism providers capitalise on their assets and connect more of them with the customers that they need. She urged all ‘forward-thinking, innovative providers’ to apply for the assistance.

Brian Connolly, markets and product experiences development officer with Tourism NI says that the new scheme comes at a critical time for the survival of many of Northern Ireland’s tourism businesses:

‘The programme will help tourism providers develop new and attractive experiences and excite visitors to explore all that Northern Ireland has to offer,’ he added. ‘Covid-19 has had a profound impact on the tourism sector and through this new programme, we want to support tourism experience providers in their journey to recovery.’

For full details of eligibility and details on how to apply, visit here.

The closing date for applications is September 25 at 3pm.