Liverpool City Region Taps Open Golf for Tourism Boost 2026

Key Points

• Liverpool’s hotels and tourism partners have launched a new partnership to maximise the economic and visitor benefits of The Open golf tournament in 2026.
• The partnership brings together Liverpool’s Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID), Sefton Council, the Liverpool City Region Destination Partnership, and England’s Golf Coast.
• Royal Birkdale will host the 154th Open from 12–19 July 2026.
• The Open has been held at Royal Birkdale more regularly than any other venue except St Andrews since it first hosted the tournament in 1954.
• The last Open in the Liverpool City Region was at Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake in July 2023, when it generated more than £187 million for Wirral and the wider region, according to an R&A-commissioned study.
• Around 261,180 fans attended the 2023 event, with a boom felt in hotels and the wider tourism sector.
• Approximately 300,000 spectators are expected for the 2026 Open across practice rounds and Championship week.
• An £2 overnight levy, approved by hotels in June 2025 and projected in 2025 to raise £116,237.32 with 88.7% hotel occupancy, will be reinvested via an ABID subvention fund to support events and partnerships.
• England’s Golf Coast includes 14 courses, three of which are Open Championship venues.
• Golf tourism, particularly from international markets such as the US, is a long-term goal; Liverpool hosted Elevate Golf for the first time in 2025 as a B2B trade event.
• The new partnership will include Travel Trade Day at The Open, promotion with VisitBritain, positioning Liverpool as an accommodation base for Championship visitors, and efforts to extend stays and increase visitor spend.
• The initiative is part of the wider “Bunker Down in The City” campaign encouraging tourists to base themselves in Liverpool and travel to Royal Birkdale by rail or road.
• Mark Tasker, general manager at Crowne Plaza Liverpool and deputy chair of Liverpool ABID, said the overnight levy was introduced to enable exactly this kind of circular visitor economy.
• Geoff Harris of England’s Golf Coast said international golf tourism has surged in recent years and presents a real opportunity for hospitality across the region, with ambitions to create a lasting legacy beyond The Open.

Liverpool (Liverpool standard) July 09, 2026 – The Open Championship returns to the Liverpool City Region in 2026, and local hotels are working with tourism partners across the area to ensure the city makes the most of the international golf tournament. The goal is to turn a major sporting event into sustained economic and reputational benefits for the whole region.

Liverpool’s Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID) has announced a new partnership with uk/local/sefton-council/">Sefton Council, the Liverpool City Region Destination Partnership and England’s Golf Coast to maximise the benefits of The Open across the city region through hotels, hospitality and wider business.

Royal Birkdale will host the 154th Open from 12–19 July 2026. Since first hosting The Open in 1954, it has been the most regular venue, other than St Andrews.

The Open was last held in Liverpool City Region at the Royal Liverpool Golf Club in Hoylake in July 2023. It generated more than £187 million for Wirral and the wider city region, a study commissioned by golf’s governing body, The R&A, found.

With 261,180 fans visiting for the tournament, the boom was felt in the city’s hotels and throughout its tourism sector. Around 300,000 spectators are expected across the practice rounds and Championship week of the Open.

It was estimated in 2025 that the £2 overnight levy, introduced after an ABID ballot in June 2025, would generate £116,237.32 with an 88.7% hotel occupancy.

As part of its strategy to reinvest the levy raised by overnight stays, the ABID creates a subvention fund which supports events and partnerships that encourage people to stay in hotels and spend in hospitality, supporting the city economy.

England’s Golf Coast is home to 14 courses, with three Open Championship venues. Golf tourism, mainly focused on international markets including the US, is a long-term goal for the visitor economy sector. Liverpool hosted Elevate Golf for the first time in 2025, an invitation-only B2B tourist and trade event connecting the golf elite and introducing them to premium venues and courses.

What activities are included in the new partnership to support The Open?

This new partnership to maximise this summer’s Open will include key activities, such as:

• Hosting international travel trade buyers in Liverpool, culminating in a dedicated Travel Trade Day at The Open to showcase the region’s golf and visitor offer.
• Working with VisitBritain and key travel trade partners to position Liverpool City Region as a leading international golf tourism destination.
• Promoting Liverpool as the ideal accommodation base for Championship visitors, with excellent transport links to Royal Birkdale and a world-class hospitality offer.
• Encouraging visitors to extend their stay, increasing hotel occupancy and visitor spend across the Liverpool City Region.
• Using The Open as a platform to secure long-term growth in international golf and leisure tourism.

The partnership is part of the wider Bunker Down in The City campaign, encouraging tourists visiting the North West for The Open to base themselves in Liverpool and travel, via rail or road, to Royal Birkdale.

How are hotel leaders and golf tourism bodies describing the strategic value of the initiative?

Mark Tasker is general manager at Crowne Plaza Liverpool and deputy chair of Liverpool ABID. He said:

“When Liverpool’s hotels voted in favour of introducing the overnight levy it was this exact kind of activity they had at the forefront of their minds; a circular visitor economy in which we are able to benefit from major events, which then, in turn, maximises the opportunity.”

“The Open and the commitment to England’s Golf Coast has long been lauded as a visitor destination goal, but now, strategically, we are able to ensure that we work with the wider golfing industry itself to ensure that Liverpool’s hotels and hospitality benefit from being part of the visitor economy during these major events.”

He added:

“We are able to look at what works and what doesn’t in terms of generating real returns for our hospitality sector and the wider city economy.”

Geoff Harris, from England’s Golf Coast, said: “Thanks to our world-class golf courses, international golf tourism has always played a part in the hospitality sector along the North West coastline and, in particular, for the Liverpool city region. However, we have seen a surge in demand over the last few years which, coupled with increased demand for longer stays, presents a real opportunity for the hospitality sector across the region.”

“We have the ambition to create a lasting legacy beyond The Open by raising international awareness of England’s Golf Coast and encouraging future golf and leisure visits throughout the year.”

He added:

“With eight of the top 100 golf courses in Great Britain and Ireland on its doorstep, including the three Open Championship venues of Royal Birkdale, Royal Liverpool, and Royal Lytham & St Annes, as well as the city region’s wider tourism offer, Liverpool and the city region is ideal for those looking for a longer, or return visit.”

What background explains the development of this partnership and the overnight levy?

The coordinated push to leverage The Open is built on a foundation of recent experience, policy change, and a longer-term vision for golf tourism in the North West.

The 2023 Open at Royal Liverpool in Hoylake demonstrated the scale of economic impact possible: more than £187 million generated for Wirral and the wider city region, according to a study commissioned by The R&A. With 261,180 fans attending, the tournament produced a noticeable boom in hotel bookings and activity across the tourism sector. This success provided a clear data point for stakeholders arguing that major golf events could be a strategic lever for the regional economy.

In response to the need to capture more value from such events, Liverpool’s accommodation sector voted in June 2025 to introduce a £2 overnight levy. The levy was intended to create a sustainable funding mechanism to support visitor economy initiatives. In 2025, it was estimated that the levy would generate £116,237.32, assuming an 88.7% hotel occupancy rate. ABID designed a subvention fund to reinvest this money into events and partnerships designed to encourage longer stays and higher spend in hospitality, creating what Mark Tasker describes as a “circular visitor economy”.

Parallel to the levy, England’s Golf Coast has been building a long-term strategy to position the North West coastline as an international golf tourism destination. The area already includes 14 courses, three of which are Open Championship venues: Royal Birkdale, Royal Liverpool, and Royal Lytham & St Annes. Golf tourism, with a focus on international markets such as the US, has been identified as a key growth area. Liverpool’s first Elevate Golf event in 2025, an invitation-only B2B trade gathering, was designed to connect the golf elite with premium venues and courses, laying groundwork for future inbound travel.

The 2026 partnership between ABID, Sefton Council, the Liverpool City Region Destination Partnership and England’s Golf Coast can be seen as the operationalisation of these earlier steps. It ties together the financial mechanism of the levy, the strategic ambition of England’s Golf Coast, and the practical experience gained in 2023 into a coordinated programme around The Open. The “Bunker Down in The City” campaign further reflects a deliberate shift in messaging: rather than encouraging tourists to stay near the course, the campaign promotes Liverpool itself as the base, with rail or road journeys to Royal Birkdale.

How might this development affect Liverpool’s hotels, workers, and wider community?

The partnership and its associated activities are likely to have measurable effects on several key audiences in the Liverpool City Region.

For hotels and hospitality businesses, the focus is on increased occupancy and higher guest spend. The partnership aims to encourage visitors to extend their stay, using Liverpool’s transport links and hospitality offer as a pull factor. With around 300,000 spectators expected across practice rounds and Championship week, even a modest increase in average stay length could translate into significant additional room nights and revenue. The ABID subvention fund, supported by the overnight levy, is designed to underwrite events and partnerships that directly support this goal, potentially improving marketing reach and packaging options for hotels.

For workers in the hospitality and tourism sectors, the expected rise in visitor numbers and longer stays points to a potential increase in demand for staff during the tournament period and possibly in the surrounding weeks. This could lead to more temporary and seasonal employment opportunities, as well as greater stability for businesses that see sustained uplift beyond the tournament itself. If the strategy succeeds in creating a “lasting legacy” of international golf tourism, as Geoff Harris describes, the sector could experience more consistent demand over time, rather than a single spike around The Open.

For the wider Liverpool City Region community, the economic benefits of a successful golf tourism strategy could support broader regeneration and investment. The 2023 Open’s £187 million impact suggests that major tournaments can deliver substantial regional economic activity. By building on that experience and using the levy-funded subvention fund to support further events, the partnership aims to convert a short-term tournament boom into a more permanent increase in visitor numbers and associated spending. The “Bunker Down in The City” approach also seeks to spread benefits across Liverpool’s accommodation, retail, and leisure sectors, rather than concentrating them solely around the golf course.

There are also potential indirect effects. A stronger reputation as an international golf tourism destination could improve the city region’s overall profile, attracting visitors who might not otherwise have considered Liverpool. This could have knock-on benefits for cultural tourism, business travel, and even education and conference sectors. If the partnership successfully positions Liverpool as a leading golf destination, the resulting brand uplift could support long-term economic growth beyond the immediate hospitality sector.