{"id":641398,"date":"2023-04-25T09:29:00","date_gmt":"2023-04-25T14:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news.sellorbuyhomefast.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/25\/king-charles-coronation-is-bringing-millions-of-tourists-and-a-cash-infusion-to-london-but-it-probably-wont-save-the-british-economy\/"},"modified":"2023-04-25T09:29:00","modified_gmt":"2023-04-25T14:29:00","slug":"king-charles-coronation-is-bringing-millions-of-tourists-and-a-cash-infusion-to-london-but-it-probably-wont-save-the-british-economy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2023\/04\/25\/king-charles-coronation-is-bringing-millions-of-tourists-and-a-cash-infusion-to-london-but-it-probably-wont-save-the-british-economy\/","title":{"rendered":"King Charles’ coronation is bringing millions of tourists and a cash infusion to London but it probably won’t save the British economy"},"content":{"rendered":"

Kelly Curto is taking her first trip outside the U.S., and the die-hard fan of the British royal family is making it the one at the top of her bucket list \u2014 heading to London for\u00a0King Charles III\u2019s coronation<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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After arriving on May 5, the 44-year-old school bus driver from Long Island and a friend will head to the Mall, the ceremonial avenue to Buckingham Palace where the\u00a0monarch\u2019s pomp-filled procession<\/a>\u00a0will pass by the following day.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s where they plan to spend the night if they can find a good spot to glimpse the gilded horse-drawn state coach, royals and thousands of soldiers filing past \u2014 despite splurging on a four-star hotel for their nine-day trip.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. You get to be part of history,\u201d Curto said. \u201cEverybody around the world knows this family. Everybody around the world is going to be watching this coronation \u2014 and we get to be a part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

The coronation<\/a>\u00a0is luring royal enthusiasts fascinated by the ceremonial spectacle \u2014 and drama \u2014 of the monarchy and far-flung visitors eager to experience a\u00a0piece of British history<\/a>. Tour companies, shops and restaurants are rolling out the red carpet, whether it\u2019s a decked-out bus tour of London\u2019s top sights with high tea or\u00a0merchandise running from regal to kitschy<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The weekend of events starting May 6 will bring a\u00a0cash infusion to central London businesses<\/a>, especially hotels, pubs and restaurants, but it won\u2019t do much for U.K. residents struggling with an economy on the precipice of recession and a\u00a0cost-of-living crisis<\/a>\u00a0that has stirred\u00a0months of disruptive strikes<\/a>\u00a0by workers seeking pay hikes.<\/p>\n

For visitors looking to splash out, hotels across London are touting coronation-themed packages, menus and decor.<\/p>\n

Those willing to spend an eye-popping 12,995 pounds (over $16,000) can get an overnight stay in the Royal Suite at the five-star Hotel Cafe Royal and a limo ride to the Tower of London for a private tour and viewing of\u00a0the Crown Jewels<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Dorchester Hotel, long a favorite with royals and celebrities, concocted a lavish, five-tier coronation cake and put up theater-style draping across its facade to re-create the decorations that it used to mark\u00a0Queen Elizabeth II\u2019s coronation in 1953<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Many international visitors are drawn by the idea of a \u201cbeautiful fairytale\u201d about \u201cthe royals and everything that is around them,\u201d general manager Luca Virgilio said.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo there\u2019s a lot of love and a lot of interest. And we are sold out already, which is very encouraging,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

The Royal Lancaster Hotel near Hyde Park is serving afternoon tea inspired by Charles\u2019 favorites: roast beef sandwiches, darjeeling tea and damson plum mousse.<\/p>\n

The spread features a darjeeling tea cake shaped like crown atop a crimson cushion, while the hotel bar serves a coronation cocktail: a martini with a splash of darjeeling tea, trimmed with gold leaf.<\/p>\n

For a different twist, Annie Verhaert, 64, and daughter Claudia Lombaert, 30, from Belgium, boarded a vintage red double-decker bus strung with Union Jack flags for a coronation-themed tour that hits landmarks like Big Ben and Trafalgar Square.<\/p>\n

On the way, they sipped tea \u2014 using cupholders to prevent spills \u2014 and snacked on finger sandwiches and pastries like the \u201croyal scone\u201d from a menu a former royal butler curated for tour operator Brigit\u2019s Bakery.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe knew the queen all our life,\u201d Verhaert said. \u201cAnd it\u2019s now the first time we see a change on the throne. So it\u2019s special.\u201d<\/p>\n

And\u00a0souvenirs are in no short supply<\/a>, including tea towels, socks, dessert plates and other paraphernalia with coronation insignia from the Royal Collection Trust, purveyor of official memorabilia.<\/p>\n

Unofficial merchandise also abounds at shops in tourist areas, with Charles\u2019 likeness crudely emblazoned on tote bags, coasters and teabag holders or coronation-branded pens, tins of fudge and playing cards offering more upscale options. Even more items show his mother, who died in September after 70 years on the throne, on everything from mugs to bobblehead figures.<\/p>\n

Officials have high hopes that the coronation will provide a vital boost to the country\u2019s tourism industry, which is still reeling from two years of COVID-19 shutdowns. The U.K. received some 29.7 million visits last year, still nearly a third below 2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvents like this really kick-start the recovery, don\u2019t they? And they put Britain on the world stage again,\u201d said Patricia Yates, chief executive of the VisitBritain tourism board.<\/p>\n

Queen Elizabeth II\u2019s Platinum Jubilee<\/a>\u00a0celebrations last year brought in an extra 2.6 million visitors to London, she said, and Charles\u2019 coronation is expected to have a similar effect.<\/p>\n

History, heritage and the royals are the biggest draw for international tourists, Yates said, and royal pageantry is a particular magnet for Americans, who are driving the U.K.\u2019s tourism recovery.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can see a 10% increase in flight bookings through May from the America market,\u201d she said. \u201cThe big question mark is, of course, China, which was our second-most-valuable market and still not coming back quite in the numbers we would like to see.\u201d<\/p>\n

The coronation\u2019s wider\u00a0impact on Britain\u2019s economy<\/a>\u00a0is less clear.<\/p>\n

Tax revenue will get a boost from extra retail spending for parties nationwide, including booze sales that have hefty alcohol duties. Pubs will be allowed to stay open two hours longer May 5-6.<\/p>\n

However, organizing the coronation has a huge cost that some reports estimate could run as high as 100 milllion pounds, and an extra public holiday on May 8 means a lost day of productivity.<\/p>\n

So while the hospitality industry benefits, \u201cthe flipside of that is that by giving everybody an extra day off, you\u2019re taking quite a bit of output out of the economy in quite a lot of other sectors,\u201d said Andrew Goodwin of Oxford Economics.<\/p>\n

The British economy has been essentially stagnant since the start of last year as\u00a0decades-high inflation<\/a>\u00a0squeezes households and small businesses. The International Monetary Fund\u00a0expects U.K. output to shrink<\/a>\u00a0by the most of any major economy this year.<\/p>\n

To keep up with the\u00a0soaring cost of living<\/a>, nurses, teachers, postal workers and others have been\u00a0striking for higher wages<\/a>. Security guards at Heathrow Airport plan to walk off the job starting May 5, threatening to disrupt travel for the coronation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of headwinds that the economy has to battle,\u201d Goodwin said.<\/p>\n

Brand Finance says the monarchy boosts the U.K. economy to the tune of 500 million pounds a year, more than making up for the estimated 350 million pounds it costs taxpayers.<\/p>\n

However, that boon is less than a third of the London-based consultancy\u2019s 2017 forecast. CEO David Haigh blamed the plunge in value on a \u201cdisastrous six years\u201d for the royal family, including a\u00a0scandal involving Prince Andrew<\/a>, a string of gaffes by minor royals and\u00a0Harry and Meghan falling out<\/a>\u00a0with the family.<\/p>\n

Still, \u201cgoing forward, we still believe that the monarchy generates more in terms of revenue for the U.K. economy than it costs,\u201d Haigh said.<\/p>\n

The royals certainly are drawing Curto, who will stay with a friend at the Wellington Blue Orchid hotel in London at a cost of about 3,000 pounds.<\/p>\n

They plan to visit Hampton Court Palace,\u00a0Westminster Abbey<\/a>, the Tower of London and make day trips to Oxford and the Cotswolds. It won\u2019t be cheap, but Curto won\u2019t be pinching pence.<\/p>\n

\u201cI plan on enjoying myself without limits,\u201d she said. \u201cI know London is an expensive city, so I\u2019m prepared to spend a fair amount.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Read More<\/a>
\n Kelvin Chan, The Associated Press<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Kelly Curto is taking her first trip outside the U.S., and the die-hard fan of the British royal family is making it the one at the top of her bucket list \u2014 heading to London for\u00a0King Charles III\u2019s coronation. After arriving on May 5, the 44-year-old school bus driver from Long Island and a friend […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":641399,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1144,43060,534],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-641398","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-charles","8":"category-coronation","9":"category-financial"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/641398","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=641398"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/641398\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/641399"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=641398"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=641398"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=641398"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}