Sunrise to Sunset Campaign Goes Live to Drive Longer Summer Stays in York

Visit York has launched its new summer campaign, “Summer in York: Sunrise to Sunset”, celebrating the city’s long, light summer days and encouraging visitors to stay later, explore further and make more of their time in York.

Led and delivered by Visit York, the campaign positions York as the perfect destination for a full summer day out, short break or overnight stay. With the message “One day isn’t enough – arrive early, fall in love by evening, stay for tomorrow,” the campaign showcases the experiences that make York so appealing from morning through to early evening, including attractions, heritage, culture, green spaces, riverside walks, shopping, outdoor dining, live entertainment and family-friendly activities.

Running from a soft launch in late April to August 2026, the campaign has been developed to inspire both national and regional audiences during the key summer planning and travel period. Activity is focused particularly on regional families within 60–90 minutes of the city and adult couples aged 25–55, encouraging them to enjoy York across a longer visit and consider extending a day trip into an overnight stay.

The campaign is supported by clear visitor insight. Staying visitors may make up 19% of York’s total visitor volume, but they generate 44% of all visitor days and deliver £1.11 billion in economic impact, compared with £0.89 billion from day visitors. With 92% of staying visitors eating or drinking after 5pm, the opportunity to encourage visitors to stay later is significant for York’s hospitality, retail, attractions, accommodation and evening economy.

“Summer in York: Sunrise to Sunset” brings this opportunity to life through a dedicated Summer Hub on the Visit York website at visityork.org/summer, featuring inspiration for full-day visits, summer events, partner highlights, special offers, blogs, accommodation ideas and practical travel information. The hub encourages visitors to plan their day with ease, from arriving by York Park & Ride to exploring the city’s attractions, enjoying Shambles Market and Shambles Food Court, making the most of the Visit York Pass and booking a summer stay.

First Bus / York Park & Ride is a key campaign partner, helping Visit York promote simple, affordable and sustainable access into the city. The campaign highlights later Park & Ride services, giving visitors more flexibility to enjoy York into the evening and making it easier for regional audiences to turn a day trip into a longer stay.

The campaign is being promoted through a coordinated programme of activity across Visit York’s owned and paid channels. This includes a refreshed hero video capturing a full York summer day from sunrise to sunset, targeted digital advertising across Instagram and Facebook, boosted social media content, Visit York eNewsletters, PR and influencer activity, York Mumbler collaboration, and promotion through York Visitor Information Centre digital screens throughout the summer holidays.

A four-week July TV VoD presence will further extend the campaign’s reach during the peak summer period, inspiring regional and national audiences at the point when many are planning summer days out and UK short breaks.

The launch has also been supported through Visit York’s social media channels, with campaign messaging encouraging visitors to “make a stay of summer in York” and highlighting experiences from morning coffee and garden strolls to historic attractions, theatre, live music and late-night bites. Partners referenced in launch activity include York Dungeon, National Railway Museum and City Cruises, while Supporter Package partners include Castle Howard and York Designer Outlet.

For Visit York members, the campaign provides a strong platform to benefit from increased summer visibility and visitor intent. A free Summer Toolkit will support members with campaign assets and suggested ways to promote family-friendly experiences, value-added activity and sustainable travel options, including York Park & Ride.

By encouraging visitors to stay longer, spend more and explore York across the whole day, “Summer in York: Sunrise to Sunset” directly supports the city’s visitor economy and helps businesses benefit from the full value of the summer season. The campaign celebrates what York does best: creating memorable experiences from first light to golden hour, and giving visitors every reason to stay for tomorrow.