TOURISM is becoming a cottage industry in Durham City.

Carol Woods, who stood unsuccessfully as the Liberal Democrats' candidate for the city in the last General Election, has turned a grade II-listed building in Gilesgate into a holiday cottage.

Over the next three years, she expects Rose Cottage to attract 200 visitors to the city, which boasts the cathedral and castle World Heritage Site.

She received a £2,500 tourism enterprise scheme grant from Durham County Council for some of the work on the cottage, which has been given a four-star rating by the Northumbria Tourist Board.

Ms Woods, general manager of the UK subsidiary of a medical equipment firm, already has two holiday cottages that are proving popular.

"It is a sideline. My mum and I run it together and it is a business that is building gradually," she said.

"I would ultimately like to have more than three cottages. It is a nice business bringing tourists to the city.

"A lot of the people who come to Durham are slightly older and like the freedom of staying in a self-catering cottage.

"It is nowhere near as expensive as a hotel. It is on a par with bed and breakfast.

"It is nice to provide an alternative kind of accommodation. I think people want to feel that they have lived in the city for a week or two."