A 'fresh look' at countryside days out

Hundreds of activities are being offered across rural South East England during the two-week tourism initiative Countryside 2011, which runs from 28 May to 12 June.The Countryside 2011 online event directory carries details of the events and activities, some of them free or with special discounts, taking place during the campaign. It is being regularly updated with new entries.

Wildlife rides in Berkshire, being a farmer for a day or experiencing the waterways on board a narrowboat in Oxfordshire, a course on driving heavy horses and mountain boarding in West Sussex, willow sculpting in Kent, shooting instruction in Buckinghamshire and tree climbing on the Isle of Wight are among the options.

Countryside 2011 is the second such event to be organised by Tourism South East to encourage more visitors to explore the great outdoors by showcasing the varied activities, including skills and sports, available across the region. The inaugural campaign in 2010 attracted 500,000 people, including 38,000 who were new visitors to the countryside.

"Last year’s first-ever Countryside campaign had a hugely positive impact on the tourism industry across the South East and encouraged thousands of people to take a fresh look at what our countryside has to offer," said Tourism South East’s rural programme manager Rachel Simpson.

"Our website attracted 27,000 hits, and we gained more than 880 Facebook fans and 740 Twitter followers. This year we expect these audiences to increase considerably."

Ordnance Survey is sponsoring Countryside 2011, which is also being supported by organisations including the National Trust, RSPB, Cycle Touring Club, British Horse Society, Sustrans and the Wildlife Trusts.