Regional development agency One NorthEast has been consulting widely on its strategy for the development of tourism in the area. John Dean reports on how tourism is set to become big business.

THERE was a time when the North-East depended for its prosperity on the traditional industries of coalmining, steelworking and shipbuilding. However, their decline over recent decades meant the region needed to produce more innovative thinking to replace the thousands of jobs which went.

One of the key sectors identified was tourism and earlier this year, a strategy was prepared which challenged the region to develop the sector and build on the North-East's assets.

Behind the three-year strategy is a team established by development agency One NorthEast (ONE), which has recently taken over responsibility for developing the tourism industry. ONE published the strategy in May and the closing date for consultations was early next month.

The importance of the work is underlined by the value of the sector to the region: according to ONE, overseas visitors spent £214m in the area last year. There were 510,000 foreign visits, which represented a tenth of the region's tourism industry. Domestic visits, the remaining 90 per cent, accounted for £868m in 2002, with 4.8m visits.

County Durham alone attracts 1.2m visitors a year, which has increased 30 per cent in the past ten years.

Kate Macnaught, ONE's head of business and enterprise, with responsibility for tourism, said: "The figures show that tourism has a significant economic impact on the region.

"Tourism accounts for ten per cent of jobs in the North-East, and when you consider that manufacturing accounts for 18 per cent, that shows the importance of the tourism sector."

Although celebrating the achievements of the region so far, the team which produced the ONE strategy for tourism concluded there remained weaknesses in the sector.

The report highlighted the range of assets the region needs to promote, including:

* Spectacular scenery ranging from moors and forests to river valleys, lakes and coastlines.

* Historic monuments such as Durham Cathedral.

* Quaysides such as the regenerated areas in Newcastle, Gateshead and Hartlepool.

* Arts complexes such as the Baltic in Gateshead.

* Museums such as Beamish, in County Durham, and the new railway museum in Shildon, County Durham, which will open soon.

* Sports facilities such as golf courses and cycle paths and Durham County Cricket Club's Riverside ground.

* The many festivals, fairs and shows that take place during the summer.

However, according to the ONE report, there is a need for:

* Tourism attractions to work more closely together.

* Better links for tourist attractions, including improved public transport services.

* Attractions to develop, including opening cafes alongside them.

* Better signs to highlight tourist attractions, particularly for overseas visitors.

* Tourism attractions prepared to open more, including in winter and during the week rather than only at weekends.

* More accommodation and for accommodation-providers to offer more packages and more rooms.

* A more distinctive feel to retail areas in towns and cities.

* More competitively priced flights to the region, for domestic visits and overseas tourists, two thirds of whom are aged between 25 and 54. One third stay in hotels and, on average, each visit brings in £319 over seven nights.

* New attractions. One being examined, according to ONE, is a water and forest park at Kielder, in Northumberland

* A new regional exhibition centre, the idea for which is being assessed.

* Make tourism a more popular career choice and improve training.

According to Mrs Macnaught, the consultation process has produced a general agreement that tourism attractions need to work more closely together.

She cites as an example the opportunities presented by linking up the opening this autumn of the railway museum in Shildon, the existing railway museum in Darlington and the recently reopened Weardale Railway.

She said it was important that visitors were able to reach tourist attractions easily, either by car or public transport, something which was being looked at as part of the strategy.

She said: "People are saying that we need to join up our tourist attractions, our transport and our infrastructure.

"There is a real opportunity to maximise what we have already got. What we are trying to do is co-ordinate attractions and activities which exist in isolation.

"We need to improve the image of the area and be proud of what we have. I am very enthusiastic about the endorsement which the strategy has received. It is important that we respond to customers' needs. It is not just about additional funding, it is about taking advantage of what is already happening."

She said persuading airlines to provide additional competitively priced flights into the region was a crucial part of the strategy.

She said: "Low-cost flights bring additional people from the UK to the region, but it is just as easy for them to jump on an aeroplane and go abroad.

"Ten per cent of our visitors are from abroad and we want to increase that, but 90 per cent are domestic and we need to keep them coming to stay in the region as well. Our visit is for the North-East to be somewhere people can go 365-days-a-year."

Making tourism an attractive career path for young people is also seen as important.

Mrs Macnaught said: "With ten per cent of North-East jobs being in tourism, it is important that 16-year-olds want to work in the sector and see how interesting it can be."