![English Tourism Week 2024 1500x390](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/English-Tourism-Week-2024-1500x390.jpg?w=1504&h=390&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&crop=focalpoint&fp-x=0.4679&fp-y=0.2611&dm=1710515405&s=94bcda15ae7996137728675b6f46ba15)
Back to Blogs
Discover
Bury St Edmunds Celebrates English Tourism Week
Bury St Edmunds Celebrates English Tourism Week
![English Tourism Week 2024 965x540](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Full-Width-Images/English-Tourism-Week-2024-965x540.jpg?w=965&h=543&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1710515242&s=2a7b250f569decbcb7c4c6a9b97cb17d)
As part of English Tourism Week (15 – 24 March) Bury St Edmunds MP, Jo Churchill, met representatives from the town’s attractions and tour guides involved with the town’s Masters of the Air tourism campaign on Friday, 15 March at Bury St Edmunds Guildhall.
Apple TV’s Masters of the Air series (the final episode dropped on Friday March 15) tells the true story of the WWII bomber boys of the American Eighth Air Force 8th Air Force, known as the Mighty Eighth. They were part of the Friendly Invasion when over 350,000 United States Army Airforce (USAAF) personnel were based in East Anglia. More than 3,000 GIs were based at the airbase in Bury St Edmunds, now Rougham Control Tower Aviation Museum.
Amongst those from local attractions who Jo Churchill met were Graham Sage, Chair and Wendy Sage, Secretary of Rougham Control Tower Aviation Museum and Jill Badman, Manager of Bury St Edmunds Guildhall, where the Royal Observer Corps kept watch over Suffolk skies in WWII. Also present were Adrian Tindall, Chair of Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides and John Saunders, the Guides’ Marketing Officer who had created a special Masters of the Air tour in collaboration with Bury St Edmunds Guildhall for visitors to the town.
They were joined by Mark Cordell, CEO of Our Bury St Edmunds BID and Sue Warren, Marketing Manager of Our Bury St Edmunds BID, including the town’s official tourism brand Bury St Edmunds and Beyond, who spoke with Jo Churchill about the campaign and the importance of tourism to the town’s local economy.
The Masters of The Air campaign so far has delivered nearly 1.7 million digital advertisements and generated 27,000 visits to the town’s official tourism website. The campaign video featuring Rougham Control Tower Aviation Museum, Bury St Edmunds Guildhall’s WWII Operations Room and the Appleby Rose Garden in the Abbey Gardens, has been viewed 35,000 times in 7 weeks. Interest in the Masters of the Air tours, run by Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides and Bury St Edmunds Guildhall, has proved so great that the tours have sold out for January to April and further tour slots have been added.
Tourism brings more than £51.3 million pounds to the local economy in Bury St Edmunds and provides over 1,000 jobs.
Jo Churchill MP said: “It was fantastic to be with Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides, Rougham Control Tower Aviation Museum and others at Bury St Edmunds Guildhall to celebrate the start of English Tourism Week. A wonderful group of volunteers absolutely celebrating what we do locally for tourism and for that broader offer to draw people into the town. Thank you to everyone who puts such hard work into the tourism offer here and let’s continue to tell everyone we know just how fabulous Bury St Edmunds is.”
English Tourism Week highlights the industry’s economic importance to local communities and promotes the innovation, quality and range of products on offer to boost domestic breaks as well as celebrating the people involved through its Tourism Superstar award.
Bury St Edmunds tour guides have been shortlisted for the 2024 Tourism Superstar award with the winners decided by public vote via Visit England’s website. Voting will continue until midnight on 24th March.
Jo Churchill also took the opportunity to congratulate the tour guides for reaching the finals and encouraged more people to vote for them.
Sue Warren Marketing Manager of Our Bury St Edmunds BID and the town’s official tourism brand Bury St Edmunds and Beyond said, “We are delighted at how well our Masters of the Air campaign has been received both locally and nationally. Its given Bury St Edmunds tourism a tremendous boost early in the year.
“Now we wish our amazing tour guides the very best of luck in VisitEngland’s Tourism Superstar award which they so well deserve”, adds Sue Warren.
To read more about Bury St Edmunds' connections to Masters of The Air visit our Guide.
Related Blogs
![Record year for The Apex and big names set to bring more visitors](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/The-Apex-interior-hero-1500x390.jpg?w=1500&h=390&auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=crop&dm=1653407478&s=e276378881204f412e9f54d69b5000d2)
News
Record year for The Apex and…
The Apex in Bury St Edmunds has seen its best year…
![Bury St Edmunds and Beyond marks National Volunteers’ Week Inspiring more people to make a difference](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Volunteers-at-Rougham-1500x390.jpg?w=1500&h=390&auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=crop&crop=focalpoint&fp-x=0.2743&fp-y=0.4659&dm=1716468437&s=86a31e037fbb87124b373d29fadd36d9)
News
Bury St Edmunds and Beyond…
Bury St Edmunds and Beyond has launched new space on…
News
Abbey Project Awarded…
The project aims to conserve and protect the ruins;…
![Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides shortlisted for VisitEngland Tourism Superstar Award](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Bury-St-Edmunds-Tour-Guides-hero-1500x390.jpg?w=1500&h=390&auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=crop&dm=1705586887&s=63cce58982cac6f72d06eaf662356eba)
News
Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides…
Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides have been shortlisted in…
![Paying tribute to Maria Broadbent](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Maria-Broadbent-Tribute-1500x390.jpg?w=1500&h=390&auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=crop&dm=1704977631&s=8a1daff29ab216af67de1f97118c3e72)
News
Paying tribute to Maria…
This week we heard the very sad news about the passing…
Latest news
![Abbey Gardens family 1500x390](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Abbey-Gardens-family-1500x390.jpg?w=728&h=376&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1652275168&s=b6bd35533a1c7bd1ddc9af5cb332588d)
News
Bury St Edmunds Parks awarded Green Flag Status!
Bury St Edmunds Parks awarded Green Flag status!
![Burys Best By Bike hero 1500x390](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Burys-Best-By-Bike-hero-1500x390.jpg?w=728&h=376&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&crop=focalpoint&fp-x=0.3452&fp-y=0.4554&dm=1720602549&s=9a9a607225afcb57e27b70aed3143ca2)
News
New Sightseeing PedalCab Rides Launched to Delight Visitors to Bury St Edmunds this Summer
Join Ecocarriers Bury St Edmunds for a Bury's Best, By Bike PedalCab rides around the town's iconic historic sights!
![Abbey gardens hero 1500x390 2024](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Abbey-gardens-hero-1500x390-2024.jpg?w=728&h=376&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1720702975&s=6175c66b51bf48449190bb1b2d89b1c9)
News
Abbey Gardens in Top 20 Most Visited Free Attractions in England and Top in the East of England
The historic Abbey Gardens in Bury St Edmunds with the ruins of the Abbey of St Edmund is in the Top 20 most visited free attractions in England and the top free attraction in the East of…
News
Unmissable Events for Families this Summer
Whether you're heading here for a summer holiday or simply looking for a fun day out, these unmissable family events and activities are sure to keep everyone entertained!
![Theatre in The Park hero image 1500x390](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Theatre-in-The-Park-hero-image-1500x390.jpg?w=728&h=376&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1720428255&s=a499c13c9b8a61672deeb0e8b804fcbc)
News
Get Ready for Theatre in The Parks This Summer
The popular outdoor theatre season returns for 2024 with a new programme of performances in the beautiful Abbey Gardens and West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village.
![Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides 1500x390](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Bury-St-Edmunds-Tour-Guides-1500x390.jpg?w=728&h=376&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1705586876&s=862b6e66ef83e0437ac2329bae7af599)
News
Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides in the top 10% of attractions worldwide
Reviews of Bury St Edmunds Tour Guides via Tripadvisor have resulted in them being rated in the top 10% attractions worldwide, classing them as a winner in the Travellers’ Choice Awards for 2024.
![Suffolk Regiment Museum 1500x390](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Suffolk-Regiment-Museum-1500x390.jpg?w=728&h=376&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1716203507&s=bddc78c644c3d3ae7bcf76dd9a646667)
News
Suffolk Regiment Museum Re-Opens After Refurbishment
The Suffolk Regiment Museum has reopened its doors to visitors after an eight-month long refurbishment.
![Pickwick Afternoon Tea 1500x390](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Pickwick-Afternoon-Tea-1500x390.jpg?w=728&h=376&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&crop=focalpoint&fp-x=0.485&fp-y=0.5262&dm=1718272069&s=a600ffc1b248685e08a90eb5030ab358)
News
The Angel Hotel Launches a new Dickens-themed themed afternoon tea experience
The Angel Hotel launches new themed afternoon tea experience based on the life & works of Charles Dickens.
![Cathedral Gin hero 1500x390](https://bury-stedmunds.transforms.svdcdn.com/production/assets/images/Main-Images/Cathedral-Gin-hero-1500x390.jpg?w=728&h=376&q=95&auto=format&fit=crop&dm=1717754453&s=49cc6a4596077ef8a04159bf9e6f6d67)
News
Cathedral Launches Three Gins
St Edmundsbury Cathedral has partnered with Heart of Suffolk Distillery to produce three Cathedral-inspired gins.