Christmas market overcrowding concerns - report
BBCYork's 2024 Christmas Market was a success, but visitors would like to see better crowd management at future events, a report has said.
Figures from the market's organiser Make It York, the city's tourism board, showed visitor numbers rose by 7% compared to 2023, with a footfall count in Parliament Street of more than 1.2 million.
However, almost a third of visitors surveyed said the market had been too crowded, and more than a fifth said it should be more spread out.
The report's findings followed calls to change the market's layout amid concerns over safety and from disabled people whose access to city centre Blue Badge parking spaces was restricted due to visitor numbers.
The report from Make It York stated last year's Christmas Market, which ran from November to December, had performed extremely well financially and it had helped to put York among the UK's leading winter destinations.
The market was forced to close for one day due to Storm Darragh.
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the survey of 103 visitors showed satisfaction in York Christmas Market stood at about three out of five on average.
Make It York said that half of those surveyed were very or fairly satisfied with the event compared to 40% who were somewhat or wholly dissatisfied and 10% who were neutral.
Meanwhile, half said they were very or quite likely to come to the market in winter this year, while more than three quarters had been to previous christmas markets.
Almost three quarters of people who visited York city centre while the market was running said they were there either solely or partly to visit it.
But a total of 18% of people who responded said the variety of stalls should be improved, while 13% said there should be more seating.
The report stated: "York Pass, the Shambles Market and the Christmas Market have all performed extremely well this year, which aligns with more visitors to the city."
However, the report stated that stopping overcrowding was the most popular area for improvement suggested by those surveyed, followed by spreading out the market.
Make It York said it looked every year at how to improve the market's layout when planning the event, and alterations had been made to try and address concerns over overcrowding.
The report's publication came after City of York Council's transport spokesperson Councillor Kate Ravilious said she was open to looking at spreading out this year's event.
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