Harrogate Borough Council appoints new marketing head to lead tourism transformation

Gemma Rio has been appointed as head of destination management and will oversee a merging of the district's various tourism bodies into one council-controlled organisation.

These include Visit Harrogate, Harrogate Convention Centre's marketing team and the district's tourist information centres.

A job advert for the senior role - to be paid up to £61,882 a year - previously said the organisation will make Harrogate a "must-visit" destination for tourists.

Mrs Rio said: "This is undoubtedly a challenging time for the visitor economy but there are already promising signs of recovery in the Harrogate district, with the Visit Harrogate website seeing record web traffic in recent months.

“I'm looking forward to supporting the sector in navigating these uncertain times, maximising the opportunity in increased domestic travel, and preparing for what we hope will be a robust 2021 spring/summer season."

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Mrs Rio will take up her new post in October and the merging of tourism bodies will take up to 12 months to complete.

She will lead two areas - Marketing Harrogate, which is focused on bidding to secure new events as well as raising the profile of the district to attract more visitors, and the new Visit Harrogate, which is focused on looking after visitors when they arrive.

Mrs Rio will report to Paula Lorimer, director of Harrogate Convention Centre which remains on standby as an NHS Nightingale Hospital.

Ms Lorimer said: "Gemma will bring a wealth of industry knowledge and experience having held leadership posts in destination marketing in Townsville Australia and as tourism manager at Tees Valley Combined Authority.

“I am sure the whole district will join me in welcoming Gemma and wish her every success here in Harrogate."

By Jacob Webster, Local Democracy Reporter