What would attract visitors to our city long term?

Again a failure! I was looking online to find out when there are Christmas markets in towns the residents from Willowbrook could visit. No hints on the Coventry Council site. But there are markets in Stratford, Birmingham, Melton Mowbray all with the dates of opening. Visitors plan in advance. I take it that Coventry Council doesn't.

I read through all 196 posts of this topic yesterday, and got the feeling that there was no definite answer. As it has not had any posts for 4 years, let's get some new ideas and comments going? Personally, I think there needs to be a combination of attractions, a single attraction would not be enough. BUT, reading Rob's link on the old Coventry Theatre, and the stars and shows that were appearing in the 60's & 70's, a new venue like that would be a good start?

I don't think that there is a definitive answer, much like most towns and cities. We live different lives to those who created them. We can grab entertainment to our homes that can't easily be rivalled. I once pointed out to a moaning American student that even on her limited income she cold live like an historic queen. She could summon history's greatest musicians, jesters and thespians to her room (seriously the Mystery Plays are terrible). She could eat spices, fruits and other foods that were worth a king's ransom, prepared by many hands. She could see distant lands for real for a modest fee or go for free online. Even as recently as the 90s, life was a lot more limited, so how do you attract 21st century people? I know that it's not popular but flats, student or otherwise are a big part of the answer. Far easier to attract people who live next door than the next mile or the next town. If there is a regular local audience it makes it pay for the sporadic visitor or tourist. I think that places like the Belgrade need more popular stuff, but not just concerts and comedians. Lots of people love a good show at the theatre but they're few and far between. Comedies, murders and musicals seem to attract the most interest. Theatres do too many grungy dramas. Parking has to be cheaper. Why would you lug your shopping round town when you can get someone to deliver it to your door for free or at least less than you'd pay in parking? Why wander around the city at night, back to your car, if you can walk a few feet from a country pub? Why will tomorrow's adults want to see our historic past if today's adults are embarrassed or uninterested in it? We should be neither proud nor ashamed of the distant past. It should just be interesting and looked after. I've said before that the Herbert is curiously lacking in Coventry history and it's a great shame because they've got the stuff the illustrate it. I'd fancy something like a craft market once a month but for very small traders and very cheap stands - a bit like a car boot sale but without the cars and the junk. The value would be to attract people into the centre, not to make a mint out of the stalls. Normally stands on markets are so expensive that there is often no variety. Lockdown and the pandemic has opened a lot of eyes to internet shopping. I'll admit that I was a trend setter since I've been buying stuff online for well over 20 years. There's been a bit of a boom on the high street now people want to get out but it won't last.

It's been over 2 years since the last post on this topic. Has anything happened during that time that would attract more visitors to our city?

Apart from the re-sited Coventry Cross, I can't think of much. Over the next decade or so most of the south side of the city centre will be bulldozed ready for the new scheme - the plans for which change occasionally as regulations and the promise of money (or lack of) keep altering. To be honest, much of what is being taken away looks awful at the moment - looking around Shelton Square it looks tired and scruffy, so almost anything will be an improvement on that. Still very annoying that they're planning to demolish the Litten Tree Building though - the last little piece of Rover history in the city centre.

Hi Rob, interesting to get your thoughts. You say Shelton Square looks scruffy, a few weeks ago, I took my daughter for her theory test in Little Park St. Not wanting to go all the way home, I decided to walk some of the places I had not been around for years. Started down Bayley Lane, down Union Square to Cox St, then taking in Cuckoo Lane, Priory Row, Trinity St, Hales St, The Burges and then up and down Hales St. The majority of that walk was scruffy, with rubbish strewn everywhere. With far too many bars and fast food places. Guess this goes with being a Uni town? I did view the Cross, and to be honest, I don't think that on its own will pull in many visitors. On a positive note, my daughter passed !!

Hey, well done to your daughter, Mick! (Maybe I didn't choose the most appropriate icon for a potential driver there! ) You are quite right about the general scruffiness around Coventry - I've never understood any excuse for littering, which is very often within yards of a bin! In the case of Shelton Square, as well as rubbish, I think the buildings themselves look so drab and awful nowadays - the post-war dream didn't age well in some cases! I also agree that the 'new' Cross won't actually pull in any more visitors, but it is at least a positive addition to that area of town.

Just to add my bit on this. The new South Side scheme has nearly 1000 homes (not student) planed within, with lots to be affordable (whatever that means today!). The Universirty has plans for the Earl Street site as a large open space, in a similar vein to opening up the view of the Cathedral from Cox Street. Hopefully more people living closer to the city will benefit us all.