Yes, you read it here first. The latest proposal to come out of the public sector, in this case VisitEngland, is travel agents could soon fulfill the role of the time honoured tourist information centre.
http://www.travelweekly.co.uk/Articles/2010/03/22/33310/travel-agencies-could-act-as-tourist-information-centres-says.html
Is there anyone out there keen to fill their shops with pamphlets on the local petting zoo and spend their days dealing with confused tourists who are badly lost?
Or is this yet another 'initiative' from the public sector designed to get the private sector to do its work as yet more cost-cutting occurs?
Let me know!
We did this for a few years. The East of England Tourist Board gave us a box with leaflets and we hand things like bus timetables out. It was a mess.
We stopped when at TIC opened in town. However this recently closed and the local chamber of trade is opening an information point with help from the town council.
There is NO WAY we would every do the TIC thing again for free.