A rail ale trail is a marketing exercise in the United Kingdom that is designed to promote tourism to a rural area, by encouraging people to visit a series of pubs that are close to railway stations along a railway line. Participants are rewarded for visiting the pubs by train. In doing this they increase the number of passengers on the railway and bring money into the local economy. The scheme is supported by the Campaign for Real Ale. The beer is often brewed locally and many of the pubs offer food as well.
Each trail is publicised by a free booklet that is distributed through stations and local outlets, and which is also available for downloading from the internet. Each time a pub is visited the booklet is stamped, provided a valid rail ticket is shown when a purchase is made. Once sufficient stamps have been collected, the booklet can be exchanged for merchandise specific for each trail, such as a t-shirt or badge.
Read more about Rail Ale Trail: History, Former Trails
Famous quotes containing the words rail, ale and/or trail:
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—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)