Boosting Hotel Bookings with Screen Tourism

How Hey Marketing helped Holdsworth House Hotel leverage film tourism to boost bookings and visibility.

Long before Musk took over the platform—when the banter was still lighthearted—Twitter was useful, not abuse-full.

Screen tourism hotel marketing

It all began with one tweet: “We think Alan and Celia should get married at Holdsworth House.”

Alan and Celia were characters in the BAFTA-winning TV show Last Tango in Halifax, set (unsurprisingly) in Halifax, West Yorkshire. In the first series, the two lovable oldies had fallen for each other in their autumn years. Their blended families brought plenty of drama and chaos, often resolved over cups of Yorkshire tea. By the end, it was clear that Alan and Celia were to be wed. As a popular wedding venue, we at Holdsworth House Hotel threw our name into the hat on Twitter (X). Seamlessly, we tread the line between real-world fact and the fabulous fiction of writer/producer Sally Wainwright.

An actor on the show spotted our tweet and re-posted it. A few tongue-in-cheek Twitter exchanges later, and we had the show’s producers and writer’s attention. A site visit for series two was hastily arranged, and the rest is now TV gold. What followed was a decade-long landslide of filming across Calderdale, West Yorkshire.

Part of Yorkshire’s marketing appeal

Of course, the media and filming frenzy that followed wasn’t solely down to one tweet. But that tweet was a catalyst—displaying social awareness, character, and impeccable timing. Ultimately, the think-big, can-do attitude of the hotel, Screen Yorkshire and Calderdale Council got the filming over the line.

At that time, Yorkshire was seen as an affordable place to film. The North offered incredible landscapes and historic architecture. It also boasted a fantastic wealth of media production skills. Because of this, the region became impossible for film and TV companies to ignore. We must also applaud Yorkshire-born Sally Wainwright. She shows an insatiable interest in the region. She also has the ability to screenwrite award-winning belters.

Halifax was entering a boom period in small-screen filming. At Holdsworth House, we were determined to be part of the action.

Lights. Camera…

Once production was agreed upon, the hotel’s marketing and operations teams worked side by side to make it happen. Filming was set for summer. We had to schedule accommodation and movement around the venue for cast and crew. We also had to arrange production trucks and set designers. Despite this, we still needed to run our core business—hosting weddings, conferences, corporate stays, and private dining. The show had to go on in every sense of the phrase.

…Action! Managing Hotel Operations During Filming

The management and operations teams did a brilliant job. From the outset, they understood the potential revenue—after all, you can’t buy publicity like a prime-time TV appearance. They focused on ensuring customer service remained impeccable. They treated the crew like stars. They made the hotel easy to do business with. We stayed flexible to the set designers’ requests—who knew that swapping a dark carpet for a light beige one would make such a difference on camera?

For marketing, the challenge was to capture and record every moment, then package and promote the story. It was also about fostering marketing relationships with media companies, the council and tourism agencies (Destination Management Organisations). Networking, standing out, getting involved, staying front of mind—it all paid off. In our case, it led to over a decade of serving on the advisory panel of the council’s tourism department. This allowed us to align our hotel marketing plans, capitalise on the latest activity and maximise our share of voice.

Improved Ratings: increased website traffic and hotel bookings

Filming Last Tango in Halifax at Holdsworth House Hotel was our first big dip into TV filming. Our episode aired on Christmas Eve… and our website crashed.

We had created blog content using keywords and phrases like “Where is Last Tango in Halifax filmed?” or “film locations for Last Tango in Halifax”. We also built a short break package for visitors wanting to experience the real-life film set locations (set-jet tourism). When the Christmas Eve searches began, our hotel and campaign SEO was already in place. It worked a little too well and the volume of web traffic crashed the site! Luckily, our fab web developer got out of his festive pyjamas and got us back online!

In revenue terms, the filming led to an initial 150% surge in bookings. Additional marketing efforts resulted in a Welcome to Yorkshire tourism award and national press coverage in the Daily Mail. More importantly, it ignited a passion for filming at the hotel, encouraging crews to return time and time again. Today, set-jet travel is a thriving and stable part of the hotel’s leisure market. Not bad for a small, independent hotel with a big imagination.

TV Takeaways