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Is Dismaland a Reason to come to Weston Super Mare

Banksy Dismaland enough to put Weston on the map?

Has Banksy's new attraction - Dismaland - given people enough reason to visit Weston ?

I mean really, what is the point of Weston-super-Mare?

It’s not as classy as Torquay, it’s not as brash and in your face as Blackpool, and it’s not nearly as stylish as Brighton, so I ask again what is the point of Weston?

Well, in the past the answer was it was as a cheap alternative to living in Bristol. 

Weston was becoming a “doughnut” town in that the population lived on the outside and there was nothing in the centre.  The people who lived in Weston Village, Locking and St Georges worked in Bristol, went out in Bristol and shopped in Bristol, and never ever (or at least rarely) went into Weston.

But as of today that has changed for 5 weeks, at least thanks to Banksy.

Today sees the opening of an apocalyptic styled theme park, Dismaland, the Banksy exhibition at The Tropicana and Weston hasn’t seen anything like it ever.  With a down-at-heel Disney like castle, Weston is officially on the map.  Local traders are rubbing their hands with glee at the thought of all those visitors.  But is this short term or could it be the start of something?

Not long ago I wrote a tongue in cheek blog about whether having a piece of Banksy’s art in your area could affect house prices, but here is an opportunity to see if it really works.

The question Weston needs to ask itself is: How do we build on this?  It would be very easy just to take the short-term boost that Dismaland will bring to Weston and then go back to what it was before; what Weston needs is to use this as a springboard to stop being a doughnut town and become a destination.

This won’t be easy, it needs both the public and private sector to work together, to decide what it wants to be.  When it is decided what direction Weston wants to go in, it needs a marketing plan to take it in that direction and it needs someone to lead from the front to make sure the plan is implemented. 

At the moment Weston doesn’t know whether it wants to be the West Country Blackpool or the West’s Harrogate, hopefully Banksy’s “Most Disappointing Visitor Attraction” will help it decide.

For more news on Dismaland check out the following that are gaining worldwide attention:

Check out some of the more popular tweets too:

 

 

Be quick though, if you plan to visit Dismaland, it is only open for 5 weeks from today and entry is a “whopping” £3 per person!
 


Comments:

Dismaland...............THEBOMB!! Lisa graffiti August 24th 2015 23:00:58