Press release -
Virgin Trains and VisitEngland launch 'Love the North' campaign to boost tourism in flood affected areas
Exclusive 30% discount on Off Peak Advance fares
A discount of 30% on Off Peak Advance fares to regions hit by floods is now available as part of Virgin Trains’ partnership with VisitEngland for their ‘Love the North’ campaign.
Virgin Trains, which operates passenger services on both the East Coast and West Coast, has teamed up with VisitEngland to support ‘Love the North’, which aims to promote tourism in the North of England and demonstrate that Cumbria, Lancashire, Northumberland and Yorkshire are #Openforbusiness following the damage caused by storms Desmond, Eva and Frank in December 2015.
The offer is available for travel between 19 February and 13 May and is timed to coincide with the February half-term holiday and the Easter break in March.
Discounted fares can be purchased on direct Virgin Trains services to destinations including Carlisle, Lancaster, Oxenholme, Penrith and Preston on the West Coast route and Berwick-upon-Tweed, Doncaster, Leeds, Morpeth and York on the East Coast until Tuesday 1 March.
Destination organisations along the East and West Coast have pulled together some accommodation offers and deals to help customers make the most of this great travel discount.
Phil Whittingham, Managing Director at Virgin Trains, said: “We care about the local communities and want to show our continued support for them. We’re pleased to launch this 30% discount as part of VisitEngland’s ‘Love the North’ campaign. We look forward to welcoming visitors on board our trains and hope they make the most of the many offers that show the region is very much open for business.”
David Horne, Managing Director of Virgin Trains East Coast, said: “This is a fantastic initiative to bolster areas affected by flooding and put them back on the map for visitors. As our head offices are in York we have seen firsthand the damage the storms caused to communities and businesses this winter. Indeed we were one of many businesses affected as our offices were flooded. York is just one of the wonderful destinations on our route which is linked by some of Britain’s most breathtaking scenery. From the Flying Scotsman season at York’s National Railway Museum to the great shopping on offer in Leeds or the spectacular backdrop of Berwick-upon-Tweed, there are plenty of great reasons to visit and we hope customers take advantage of this offer.”
ENDS
Topics
- Tourism
Categories
- east coast
- trains
- regional news
- routes & stations
- west coast
Virgin Trains West Coast offer
The 30% discount is available on off-peak Advance fares only and can be booked from Tuesday 9 February until Tuesday 1 March 2016.
The offer is available on direct services along the West Coast to Carlisle, Lancaster, Oxenholme, Penrith, Preston, Warrington and Wigan from Birmingham New Street, Birmingham International, Coventry, Milton Keynes, London Euston, Watford and Wolverhampton for travel between 10 February – 13 May 2016. For more information about the offer on Virgin Trains West Coast, and to book tickets, visit: www.virgintrains.co.uk/lovethenorth
Virgin Trains East Coast offer
The 30% discount is available on off-peak Advance fares only and can be booked from Tuesday 9 February until Tuesday 1 March 2016.
The offer is available on direct services along the East Coast to Alnmouth, Berwick-upon-Tweed, Bradford Forster Square, Brough, Doncaster, Durham, Harrogate, Hull, Keighley, Leeds, Morpeth, Northallerton, Selby, Shipley, Skipton, Wakefield Westgate and York travel between 10 February – 13 May 2016. For more information about the offer on Virgin Trains East Coast, and to book tickets, visit: www.virgintrainseastcoast.com/lovethenorth
Virgin Trains is the brand name of Virgin Rail Group (VRG), which is owned by Virgin Group (51%) and Stagecoach (49%). Virgin Trains has operated the West Coast passenger train franchise since 1997, serving key UK cities including London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and Glasgow. In June 2014 the Department for Transport (DfT) awarded VRG a new franchise until at least April 2017.
Virgin Trains is committed to delivering a high speed, high frequency service, offering shorter journey times, more comfortable travel and excellent customer service. We provide the most frequent long-distance rail service in Europe (London - Manchester and London – Birmingham, both every 20 minutes).
Since 1997, Virgin Trains has introduced over 70 new trains at a cost of £1.5 billion. The service carries more than 34.5 million passengers a year and Virgin Trains employs approximately 3,290 staff.
Virgin Trains customers consistently rate the company as one of the top long-distance rail franchise operators in the National Passenger Survey (NPS) commissioned by industry watchdog “Passenger Focus”.
Visit the Virgin Trains Media Room - www.virgintrains.co.uk/mediaroom - for the latest news, images and videos. Subscribe here for regular news from Virgin Trains.
Press Office: 0845 000 3333. Company website: http://www.virgintrains.co.uk/.
About Virgin Trains East Coast
Virgin Trains East Coast is the brand name of InterCity Railways Ltd (ICR), which is owned by Stagecoach Group (90%) and Virgin Group (10%). Virgin Trains East Coast began operating services on the East Coast Main Line in March 2015, serving key UK cities including London, Peterborough, Doncaster, Leeds, York, Newcastle, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Inverness. The franchise will last until at least 31 March 2023.
Visit the Virgin Trains East Coast Media Centre at: www.virgintrainseastcoast.com/media-centre for the latest news and images.
About VisitEngland
VisitEngland’s focus is on the development and delivery of the new Discover England fund for product development to ensure that bookable regional product is being sold in international markets. This activity will also benefit the domestic industry by building engagement and partnerships between and across regions and developing product that will be attractive to both domestic and international markets
Our work is underpinned by robust research and customer insights. You can access the latest in-depth market intelligence and statistics on www.visitengland.org/insight-statistics
Tourism in England is worth £106 billion and supports 2.6 million jobs
