TOURISM personnel from across the North of England have been introduced to Teesdale in an effort to increase the number of visitors.

The event was part of Teesdale Marketing's Discover Teesdale initiative, which aims to attract special interest groups and tourists to the area and included visits to Raby Castle and Bowes Museum.

Organiser Catherine Turnbull, marketing supervisor for Raby Estates, said: "Teesdale Marketing is keen to increase awareness of what Teesdale has to offer. By giving the advisory staff first-hand experience, we expect they will be more likely to recommend Teesdale attractions to inquirers."

Rachel Scott, marketing officer for Bowes Museum, said: "It's vital to meet people face-to-face. We have confirmed, for example, that there is demand from Durham Tourist Information Centre to run a regular guided coach tour to Teesdale at least once a week during the summer months.

"We are also hoping to work more closely with Barnard Castle coach companies to understand how the group travel market operates and therefore how we can attract more groups to Teesdale."