Cheltenham Festival: Local economy set to lose £50 million with hospitality sector hit hardest
Pubs, restaurants and hotels would usually be welcoming hundreds of customers a day during Festival week
Cheltenham's local economy is expected to lose out on approximately £40-50 million this year as Gloucestershire's biggest horse racing event goes ahead behind closed doors.
The Cheltenham Festival is guaranteed to boost revenue and profits of local hospitality, including bars, pubs, cafes, restaurants and hotels.
But as the country remains in lockdown, the local economy is set to take another huge hit financially after an already gruelling year during the pandemic.
The Queen's Hotel is one of the most well-know boutique hotels in the county but unfortunately they won't be welcoming guests this year to stay during Festival week.
Erol Uray, General Manager of The Queen's Hotel, said:
"If you put a feeling to it not opening i guess it would be sadness. We always look forward to the festival in March and there's a lot of preparation we do for this period.
"We welcome about 400 guests every evening and we're obviously fully booked throughout the period.
It's not just the hospitality sector in Cheltenham which is missing out financially this year. The unique buzz which encompasses the town during Festival week is also going to be lost.
Erol Uray continued:
"Obviously we'll be impacted financially. We plan the whole year and can always call on this week to bring in a lot of money after the winter period which is traditionally a lot quieter.
"But the whole town is missing out as well. Cheltenham comes alive this time of year and it's not just us at the hotel which is missing out.
"But we are hopeful for next year. And also the smaller meets throughout the year may also be possible too so November is also a date to look forward to at least".
Many hospitality businesses gear up for this week in March as a way to recover from a reduction in business over January and February after the Christmas period.
Many businesses will feel the pinch this year and feel incredibly frustrated as the second stage of the roadmap out of lockdown is merely a month away, which would have seen some hospitality venues welcome customers back outdoors.
Ian Mean, director of Business West in Gloucestershire, said:
"It's quite difficult to be exact but the loss to the local economy, and that's not just Cheltenham but actually the whole of the South West, could be between £80-100 million.
"In Cheltenham alone the estimates are around £45-50 million and most of that is taken up in hospitality.
"To stay for the whole 5 days people book way in advance and have to book hotels maybe 40 or 50 miles away so the knock on is not just in Cheltenham but the whole region".
Around 300,000 descend to Prestbury Park each year with many coming from across the country and overseas from Ireland.
Ian Mean added:
"Many people come over from Ireland and huge amounts of Irish money is spent during Festival week. If you look at how much money is being spent by the Irish it's quite mindblowing.
"They also spend that in the locality like the hotels and the pubs.
"Also for people like taxi drivers it's a massive hit. The Festival is the lifeblood for taxi companies. Cheltenham is a resilient place but lockdown is going to have a big effect on it this year".
It's not uncommon for locals to pack their bags and rent out their homes for a week during the Festival.
Holiday homes, Air BnB's and hotels get booked up months in advance all across the South West region - to as far as Bristol.
Raphael Herzog, Chair of the Bristol Hoteliers Association, said:
"Historically, a festival like Cheltenham will bring potentially five to seven times the revenue of a normal week to hotels around the Gloucester area, like Stroud and even outside Bristol.
"Outside of Covid, this will definitely have an impact to the hotel industry in this region but hopefully no one will shut for good.
"I think Cheltenham Festival not going ahead is just one of many huge events in the area which have now been cancelled and that will have an impact on hotels.
"But I do believe that as the summer approaches people will be having more staycations which should give us that boost".
Lockdown is certainly adding salt to the wound for businesses across the South West who were banking on getting that much needed income from the Festival.
But hope is on the horizon as many smaller events are set to go ahead later this year which will hopefully bring that much needed injection of money as they wait with anticipation for the green-light to re-open.