A region’s tourism department is hoping to attract visitors from Australia and New Zealand for a government-sponsored trip Down Under.
Cumbria Tourism will be travelling in September, in partnership with several tour operators.
Chief Executive Gill Haigh said: “Our aim is to get these visitors out of the big cities and into our beautiful county.”
Windermere Borough Council Mayor Christine Hallatsch said the council favoured tourists who wanted to admire the “natural beauty” of the Lake District, rather than groups who “come to party”.
Ms Haigh said the group was looking forward to travelling to the two countries with national agency VisitBritain.
“Australia and New Zealand are important markets for British tourism,” she said.
The group will meet with tour operators in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane in the hope of developing business links.
Windermere Lake Cruises is one of the operators of the trip, along with Lake District Country Hotels, the World of Beatrix Potter Attraction and the Lakeside and Haverthwaite Railway.
Jennifer Cormack, the company’s sales and marketing director, said overseas travel agents traditionally only included London and Edinburgh in their itineraries.
“Now they’re adding the English Lake District,” she said.
Mayor Hallatsch said visitors from Australia and New Zealand were more likely to stay in hotels than Airbnbs and were therefore less likely to crowd out locals.
“The council prefers tourists who come here to learn about our heritage and appreciate the natural beauty of this World Heritage Site, rather than groups of singles who come here to party, which results in antisocial behaviour,” she said.
The trip is scheduled from September 8 to 13.
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