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Grand Départ 2015 generated €25 million for Utrecht

16th January 2016

 

The Grand Départ 2015 in Utrecht generated €25.3 million for the town and the region, in money spent by visitors, reports NOS.nl. The information comes from research done by Utrecht University for the local council.

However, the council's €15.4 million budget for the event was not enough, and there was an overspend of €386,000. Reasons for this include disappointing income from parking, and the exceptionally hot weather, which meant that extra measures had to be taken, and therefore extra money spent. Further, not as much money was raised from sponsors as hoped.

The University report was critical of the use of 1,300 volunteer Tour Makers, and insufficient professional staff, which it said made the organisation fragile in some areas. It did, however, stress the great success of the event, and the publicity it gave to Utrecht, which it said was comparable with €33 million worth of advertising. The council hopes this will result in more tourists visiting Utrecht.

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