HUNDREDS of businesses will gather today to celebrate the success of York’s tourism industry.

About 200 tourism businesses from the city will take part in a street party at York Castle Museum, organised by Visit York.

Hotel managers, publicans, theatre bosses, restaurateurs, shop owners and attractions managers will all get together to share York’s good news, discuss how they can work together to market the city and ensure the continued success of York’s tourism industry.

John Yeomans, chairman of Visit York, said: “It is vitally important that York’s tourism businesses all work together to share best practice and shout loud and proud about what the city and the region has to offer.”

The gathering is an opportunity to share good news from across the city and further improve the city’s tourism sector, in the UK and internationally.

Recent successes of York’s tourism include York Theatre Royal’s production of the Railway Children, which has just announced plans to transfer to Canada, the Yorkshire Museum being short-listed for the Art Fund Prize and Yorkshire Air Museum being voted Best Attraction, in a national poll.

Other successes include Shambles being voted most picturesque street in Britain, and a 49 per cent increase in visitors to Visit York’s new Museum Street visitor centre.

Special guest at the event is Karen Waugh who recently opened The Fort, York’s first independent boutique hostel, which is the 700th tourism business to join forces with Visit York and Welcome to Yorkshire.

Karen said: “We are delighted to join Visit York and Welcome to Yorkshire to market the Fort.

“As a relatively new business we look forward to working with York’s tourism experts in promoting the Fort and we are confident of a very successful 2011.”

Mr Yeomans said: “We are particularly delighted to welcome Karen as our 700th business as a member of Visit York and Welcome to Yorkshire, at a time when private sector support for our industry is so crucial.”