5 easy ideas to encourage last-minute visitors to your attraction this Father’s Day
Days out are top of the list for things to do on Father’s Day. But this year, uncertainty and nervousness around Covid-19 guidance may mean that more families than usual have left their Father’s Day plans to the last minute.
If your attraction still has availability on Sunday 20 June 2021, or you were more restrained than usual in planning and promoting your Father’s Day activities, you might want a few ideas to help your visitor attraction stand out to last-minute planners. We’ve got your back!
Here are 5 ideas to inspire families waiting until the eleventh hour to choose your visitor attraction for their Father’s Day fun. They’re all relatively easy to set up and will look great in your Father’s Day marketing activity.
1. Host family photoshoots
Hire a photographer to roam your visitor attraction and capture those happy family moments. You could manage this in any number of ways – cover all the costs and logistics for the experience or find a photographer who can manage all that themselves, with or without charging the families. Choosing a Polaroid event photographer would be an uncomplicated way to do this, although digital photos are easier for visitors to share online, which has obvious peer-to-peer marketing benefits.
2. Set up a dads-only area
Family days out are great, but sometimes dad just wants a bit of peace and quiet. Give them the best of both worlds! Set up a dads-only area filled with comfy seats and table service so dads can grab a short break while the rest of the family is elsewhere. Even better, set it up somewhere with a view of a children’s play area so single dads can relax while their kids are occupied. Bonus points for a Father’s Day-themed menu!
3. Provide free massages for dads
Father’s Day shouldn’t be restricted to the sport, BBQ and beer clichés. Break the mould and offer dads a spot of pampering. While a pop-up massage service with masseuses would be ideal, anxiety about Covid-19 and current social distancing guidance could make this a tricky one to pull off. Instead, a row of automated massage chairs should do the job nicely. Just make sure they’re thoroughly cleaned between each use and supplied by a Covid-compliant third party.
4. Appeal to Father’s Day foodies
Having just trounced the BBQ and beer clichés, it’s worth noting that Father’s Day foodie ideas do tend to go down well! You could sell Father’s Day picnic hampers (pre-bookable or available from your on-site café/restaurant) for families to eat in the grounds, offer money off food for fathers or, yes, break out the BBQ!
5. Offer Father’s Day vouchers and freebies
Special offers, easy gift ideas and freebies are effective attention-grabbers. You could offer money off entry for dads on the day or on a future visit, give dads a free ice cream on arrival or plan free Father’s Day-themed craft activities for kids. Anything that helps families save time, money and energy – and makes them feel special – will help you stand out from the crowd.
NB: We’ve done our best to come up with Father’s Day activities that adhere to relevant, current Covid-19 regulations, but if you decide to go ahead with any of these, please check the latest local guidance and ensure any third parties observe the rules.
