Rising Together: “A New Era for Bournemouth, Poole & Christchurch Tourism!”
Destination Marketing Organisation launches to drive growth and resilience in the region’s £1.3 billion visitor economy.
[Bournemouth & Poole, Dorset] - In a strategic move to secure the future of the region's visitor economy, the Destination Management Board (DMB) has established ‘Bournemouth & Poole Tourism’, a new, independent Destination Marketing Organisation (DMO), working alongside Christchurch’s Town Council who have taken over responsibility for the Christchurch Tourism website. This launch marks a fundamental shift towards an industry-led, commercially focused, and resilient model for tourism in the area.
With the official tourism websites of bournemouth.co.uk and pooletourism.com scheduled to be switched off at the end of May 2025 due to Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole (BCP) Council's evolving role and stepping back from destination marketing, the DMB acted decisively to avert this digital cliff-edge. A tender process to find a sustainable solution resulted in a new partnership with local agency Soul Motion, who have now taken over the management of the sites at no upfront cost. This action has safeguarded vital digital assets for the destination, which in 2024 alone attracted over 3 million page views and 1.3 million unique visitors across bournemouth.co.uk and pooletourism.com. In addition, its social media brands, Love Bournemouth & Love Poole, reached 14.1 million people with engagement of over 1 million.
‘Bournemouth & Poole Tourism’ will now manage these two high-performing websites and their associated social media brands. This modern, two-tiered structure separates strategic oversight (the DMB) from operational marketing (‘Bournemouth & Poole Tourism’), a design intended to create a more agile and effective partnership.
Andy Lennox, Chair of the BCP Destination Management Board said, “It has been an incredibly difficult couple of years for destination marketing and Tourism after the removal of funding from BCP Council - however this marks a new exciting chapter for Tourism. The DMB has managed to save the websites from being closed thanks to the partnership with Soul Motion and now the new DMO will be led by business for business - I truly hope everyone supports it by taking a partnership opportunity".
Central to the launch is the Bournemouth & Poole Tourism Partnership Scheme, which offers local businesses a direct way to invest in and benefit from the new DMO's success. The scheme provides a range of tiered partnership options, giving businesses enhanced listings and visibility on the newly refreshed official destination websites that soft-launched in June 2025.
Key benefits of the BP Tourism Partnership Scheme include:
- Enhanced business listings on bournemouth.co.uk and pooletourism.com.
- Dedicated business profile pages with images, descriptions, and direct links to websites, booking platforms or online stores.
- Priority placement in category listings and featured areas.
- Opportunities for inclusion in themed itineraries, guides, and marketing campaigns.
- Exclusive advertising and promotional opportunities.
This new model is designed for the competitive reality of today's tourism landscape. With a sustainable, hybrid funding model based on private-sector membership and commercial income, ‘Bournemouth & Poole Tourism’ will be a lean, data-driven organisation with a single-minded mission: to deliver a tangible return on investment for its members and drive sustainable, year-round growth for the entire destination.
For more information on the new BP Tourism Partnership Scheme, businesses are urged to register their interest at: https://zfrmz.eu/gkkqVuMSdCyhPcxvnbQA
To stay updated, industry members are also encouraged to sign up to the new Bournemouth & Poole Tourism Trade Mailing List at: https://mailchi.mp/bptourism/tradenewsletter
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Notes to Editors:
Bournemouth & Poole Tourism (Bournemouth & Poole Tourism Board Ltd) is the new, independent Destination Marketing Organisation (DMO) for Bournemouth and Poole, owned by the DMB. It is focused on commercial promotion and delivering a tangible return on investment to its business members. Set up by the Destination Management Board and being delivered, working in partnership with Soul Motion.
https://facebook.com/bournemouthofficial
https://instagram.com/bournemouth_official
https://tiktok.com/@lovebournemouth
https://youtube.com/@lovebournemouth
https://facebook.com/lovepooleuk
https://instagram.com/lovepooleuk
https://tiktok.com/@lovepooleuk
https://youtube.com/@lovepooleuk
Business/Industry Channels:
https://www.linkedin.com/company/bptourism
https://www.instagram.com/bptourism
The Destination Management Board (DMB) serves as the region's overarching Destination Management Organisation, providing strategic leadership and coordination for the entire Bournemouth, Christchurch & Poole area. It is the coordinating body that unites the fragmented tourism sector under a single, coherent Destination Management Plan. (dmbdestination.co.uk)
Soul Motion is a social media agency based in Dorset, specialising in the tourism, arts, and events sectors. Over the last 9 years, they have worked on numerous campaigns for regional tourism boards, the wider industry as well as overseeing the delivery of the social media communications for numerous major events including the Bournemouth Air Festival for the last 7 festivals. (soulmotionmedia.com)
Christchurch Destination Website is now managed by Christchurch Town Council, with the Destination Management Board providing strategic oversight, advice and further marketing support (social media). The new Christchurch tourism website went live at the end of August 2025, with a launch event planned for this autumn.
https://visit-christchurch.co.uk
https://facebook.com/lovexchurch
https://instagram.com/lovexchurch
https://youtube.com/@lovexchurch
This development comes as Dorset has been awarded official Local Visitor Economy Partnership (LVEP) status by VisitEngland, and the new BCP structure is designed to be a key strategic partner within this county-wide framework.
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BP Tourism Partnership Scheme Graphic
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