The Seckford Hall Blog

Ipswich tourism surge leaves officials puzzled by success

marks — Wed, 22 May 2013 17:15:13 +0000

Officials have been unable to pinpoint what made Ipswich the UK’s 43rd most popular destination for foreign visitors last year.

About 76,000 tourists visited the Suffolk town in 2012, up from 53,000 in 2011, according to Visit Britain.

The redeveloped waterfront, the town’s cultural offerings and its key role in the Tour of Britain cycle race have been credited with attracting tourists.

Keith Brown, of Visit East Anglia, said: “I think it’s a combined effort.”

Mr Brown said festivals such as Ip-art and the Maritime Festival had put Ipswich on the “cultural map” and helped attract people to the town.

Ipswich’s proximity to London – it takes just over an hour via train – makes it an easy destination for the 15 million people who visited the capital last year.

‘Fantastically well’

But Ipswich’s upturn cannot just be attributed to the success of the Olympics, according to Joss Croft, marketing director for Visit Britain.

He said: “In Olympic year you would actually see a decrease in the number of visitors, so Suffolk and Ipswich have done fantastically well to hold their own and actually increase their business.”

It was not so good for Norwich, which despite being the 37th most visited destination in the country saw a fall in the number of tourists staying in the city – down from 88,000 in 2011 to 86,000.

Cambridge fared better. It was eighth in Visit England’s table and saw its visitor numbers rise from 387,000 to 398,000.

Martin Pikes, who is chairman of the Ipswich and District Hotel Association and runs his own B&B, said Ipswich had made a name for itself with sporting events.

Last year the town hosted the first leg of the Tour of Britain, which was the first post-Olympic race for Sir Bradley Wiggins and attracted about 180,000 spectators, according to Suffolk County Council.

“We punch much bigger than our weight,” Mr Pikes said.

“I totally take my hat off to the whole cultural scene, we don’t actually shout about it enough.”

Carol Jones, portfolio holder for economic development at Ipswich Borough Council, agreed that more could be done to attract people to the town.

“We could definitely do better,” she said.

“Attracting people from the waterfront to walk up to the town to Christchurch Mansion, to the park, to the museum, that’s the way of doing it I think.

“Our tourist information centre has really popular guided tours – advertising them takes people to the little hidden treasures of the town.”

The county town of Suffolk has a population of 130,000 and is about 80 miles (128km) from London
England’s two most successful football managers, Sir Bobby Robson and Sir Alf Ramsey, led the national side after successful spells at Ipswich Town
Cardinal Wolsey was born in Ipswich and went on to become Henry VIII’s right hand man
Ipswich claims to be the nation’s oldest Anglo Saxon town

New, Stay and Sail Break at Seckford Hall Hotel

marks — Mon, 20 May 2013 11:28:35 +0000

Are you looking for a break with a difference?

We have teamed up with Viking Mariners to offer our guests a wonderful sail and stay package. You will be transported to Ipswich waterfront where you’ll set sail on the stunning local waters. Sit back, relax and enjoy the wildlife and scenery this area of outstanding natural beauty has to offer. Or take to the helm and learn the ropes. Whatever your choice, you’ll return from your break refreshed and exhilarated. Just £300.00 per person for a two night stay in a standard room and includes your evening meal on the first night, breakfast both mornings, use of the pool and leisure facilities, complimentary transfers between the hotel and Waterfront, a full days sail on a luxury yacht 10am – 5pm (return time approximate), all refreshments including lunch during the sail and a glass of something lovely as you sail back into the bustling and panoramic Ipswich Waterfront and the services of a fully qualified skipper and mate (wet wear gear if necessary) To book call 01473 281961 or visit click here Please quote Seckford Hall Stay and Sail Package when booking.

Seckford Hall Hotel at the Suffolk Show

marks — Mon, 20 May 2013 10:40:45 +0000

We are pleased to announce that we will be at this years Suffolk Show in conjunction with the Suffolk Chamber of Commerce. Visit the Chamber stand on either day between 3 and 4pm for your free ice lolly courtesy of Seckford Hall Hotel. For more information click here. We’re really getting into the spirit with an original ice cream trike kindly supplied to us by Robertos Ices who supply to the hotel.

We look forward to seeing you at the show!

Spring into May

marks — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 10:35:07 +0000

We’ve just launched our Spring newsletter with lots of great seasonal offers – the hotel gardens are waking up after the long winter – how about a lovely Suffolk retreat?

Alfresco at Seckford Hall

marks — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 08:27:37 +0000

With this recent spell of beautiful weather how about a game of croquet in the walled garden, giant Jenga overlooking the lake or just chillax on a bean bag in the garden – there’s something for everyone at Seckford Hall!

Horse and Carriage at Seckford Hall

marks — Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:07:49 +0000

A couple of guests enjoyed a horse and carriage ride whilst staying at Seckford Hall today – they chose the best day of the year so far in terms of weather for their open top ride! What an exciting and unique experience whilst staying in Suffolk!

Need to land a helicopter?

marks — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 10:38:47 +0000

We’ve just had a helicopter land at Seckford Hall transporting the passengers to a local meeting. If you need to land a helicopter in Woodbridge – Seckford Hall will happily accommodate you!

Daffodils everywhere at Seckford Hall Hotel

marks — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 12:52:03 +0000

With the recent warmer weather our daffodils have finally opened with a splash of yellow evident throughout the Hotel – they really are a joy to behold throughout Seckford Hall Hotel

Its getting warmer…eventually!

marks — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 13:38:04 +0000

Take a walk around the beautiful gardens

It appears that the weather has finally turned the corner with weather forecasters predicting temperatures to rise this weekend! A perfect opportunity to book a break at Seckford Hall; enjoy a walk around our beautiful gardens where you’ll notice that our daffodils have just started to open or perhaps a visit to the Suffolk coast for a walk along the beach to embrace the rise in temperature!

Hope to see you soon at Seckford Hall Hotel

Marquee weddings at Seckford Hall

marks — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 11:45:38 +0000

Last week, we hosted a beautiful marquee wedding here at Seckford Hall on the terrace outside the Lakeside suite. Marquee weddings provide a lovely setting to hold a wedding breakfast after a civil ceremony in the majestic Lakeside Suite. With many different lighting options available from chandeliers to twinkling fairy lights, carpeting to suit your needs and with panels to overlook our lake – have you considered a marquee wedding at Seckford Hall?