VisitBritain is tapping into the charm and popularity of one of Roald Dahl’s beloved characters to promote Britain’s ‘Giant’ appeal as a family-friendly tourism destination.
The organisation launched its £350,000 ‘Where Giant Dreams come to Life’ campaign earlier this week, ahead of the forthcoming movie premiere of The BFG – a Disney film adaptation of Dahl’s ‘The Big Friendly Giant’.
Running for six weeks across digital and social media, the campaign taps into the magic of the movie, which was filmed across several locations across Britain including Blenheim Palace, London, the Isle of Skye and Bamburgh beach in Northumberland.
The campaign features a set of exclusive images of giant landmarks in Britain including the Angel of the North, Big Ben, the Isle of Skye and the lions in Trafalgar Square; and utilises the hashtag #OMGB (Oh My GREAT Britain) to urge fans of the movie to upload their own ‘giant’ experiences and locations across Britain to their own social media channels.
According to VisitBritain’s Chief Executive, Sally Balcombe, the collaboration with Disney is an opportunity to promote the ‘unexpected’ side of Britain and drive growth for tourism from a large audience.
This isn’t the first time VisitBritain has tapped into the film industry to promote tourism to the destination. Late last year, the bureau utilised the power of Bond to cash in on more visitors.
Arrival numbers to Britain increased by five percent last year compared to 2014. Visitors spent one percent more, up to £22.1 billion.