Balloon festival to draw visitors to Southport

A hot air balloon festival is among the events being organised to draw more visitors to Southport in 2016. The town has a number of events already lined up for the year, as part of the Southport Development Strategy. Nexus, the author of the report, stated that the town already has a successful events programme which attracted visitors to Southport, both day visitors and those staying for longer periods. Among the festivities which have been planned for the next 12 months are British Musical Fireworks, Southport Arts Festival and the Southport Air Show, which is celebrating 25 years in 2016. To coincide with the air show theme, a hot air balloon festival will be held above Southport Beach, to provide family entertainment. The town hopes to emulate the success of the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta, which attracts around 100 hot air balloons from all over the world, which attracts about 500,000 visitors from the city and other locations. Although Southport has a reputation for its events, Nexus believes that a couple more will attract a new target market to the town. One of the suggestions is for a Street Games event, which would involve urban activities including street art and performance. This would be similar to the Portsmouth Street Games, which provided a graffiti canvas in the shape of a New York Subway train, so that street artists from all over the world could showcase their talents. Street dance, BMX, skate boarding and other elements will also be included. A hot air balloon festival will provide entertainment for all the family.