The devastating impact of Covid on tourism in Kent has been laid bare in a new report.

Visitor numbers, spending and jobs all took a huge hit in 2020 compared to 2019, work commissioned by Visit Kent has confirmed.

The Kent Tourism Economic Impact Study 2020, published today, predictably reveals "a significant drop in volume of trips and related expenditure" against a backdrop of lockdowns and Covid restrictions.

It concluded the number of visitors to the county halved in 2020, compared with 2019 – day trips, for example, nose-dived from 61,660,000 to 31,189,000.

The resulting decrease in overall value to the local economy was an eye-watering £2.53 billion – down from £4.15bn in 2019 to £1.6bn in 2020.

And its knock-on impact on jobs saw the total number of roles that rely on tourists fall from 81,458 to 50,026.

Few industries felt the impact of the pandemic more than tourism, as stark statistics from the impact report show.

In Canterbury, traditionally one of the county's tourism hotspots, day trips fell from 7.1 million to 3.8 million, while overnight stays declined from 650,000 to 305,000 – meaning the local economy lost out on nearly £329m.

Medway, another popular destination, saw day trippers decrease from 4.4 million to 2.1 million and the number of those staying overnight went from 524,000 to 202,000, leaving a £230m hole in the area's coffers.

It was a similar story across the county, as visitors stayed away or at home due to the pandemic.

In 2020, two national lockdowns, the first brought in during March, meant many businesses, including pubs, hotels and theatres, were forced to remain closed and most travel was banned.

Restrictions imposed on people limited where and how many others they could meet.

In the September, a 10pm curfew was introduced for the hospitality sector.

A month later, the tier system began which applied local lockdown rules, depending on case rates.

Kent initially was put at "medium" Covid-19 alert level but from December the county went into tier 3 and then later in the month tier 4 as restrictions were toughened.

Visit Kent chief executive, Deirdre Wells, called for "long-term support" from the government.

She said: “After a strong performance in 2019, our sector’s bold plans for 2020 were utterly disrupted by the Covid-19 crisis.

"This latest research is a stark demonstration of the direct impact on Kent’s brilliant tourism, leisure, and hospitality sector, which is one of our county’s biggest employers, and the life and soul of our high streets.

"The findings from 2020’s Economic Impact Study demonstrate exactly why our industry continues to need long-term support from central government, to enable a sustainable destination recovery.

“We are extremely grateful to our Kent residents who have shown unwavering levels of support to their local businesses throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

"From eating out to help out and pledges of support, to venue visits with loved ones and switching up their shopping habits, the sense of pride throughout the county has kept our industry going through these unprecedented times.”

Nationally, VisitBritain estimates that spending by domestic tourists was £34bn in 2020, 63% down on the previous 12 months. And visitors to the UK from overseas plummeted to 11.1 million, a 73% drop, spending £6.2bn, which was 78% less than in 2019.

Looking ahead, as the industry works to rebuild, Ms Wells highlighted the fact Lonely Planet has put Kent's Heritage Coast – the chalk cliffs between Kingsdown and Folkestone – as number four on a list of the world’s best regions to visit in 2022.

She added: "Our partners across the region have been working extremely hard over the last 18 months to welcome visitors back safely and to continue providing a first-class experience, with many proudly displaying VisitBritain's We're Good to Go kitemark as a way of reassuring customers and staff that processes are in place to welcome them back with confidence.

"We are hugely honoured to see ‘Kent’s Heritage Coast’ cited as one of Lonely Planet’s best travel destinations for this year.

"This award coincides with Visit Kent’s 20th anniversary and marks the biggest year to date in terms of the long-term recovery of our region’s tourism and hospitality sector.

"Accolades such as Lonely Planet’s ‘Best in Travel’ are exceptionally important for reminding visitors of exactly what makes our corner of the world so special.

"Thanks to incredible collaborations county-wide, we’re confident that we can build a vibrant, sustainable, and resilient industry for the future, together.”

To read the full report, click here.