TOURISM is one of Cumbria's most important industries, and it could be in line for a welcome boost this summer.

The sector supports one-in-five jobs in the county and contributed £2.62bn to the economy last year.

But so far 2016 has brought mixed fortunes.

It started with the aftermath of Storm Desmond in December, which played havoc with roads and bridges and flooded more than 6,000 homes and businesses.

The loss of the A591, one of the Lake District's major transport routes, was a particular blow.

Pictures of the damaged highway, looking as if it had been ripped open by an earthquake, were beamed around the world and acted as a deterrent to visitors who saw Cumbria as a disaster zone.

The cost of the closure to tourism businesses was put at £1m a day, so its reopening ahead of schedule in May was greeted with relief.

On the other hand, the result of last month's EU referendum has triggered a fall in the pound against almost every other global currency.

This is widely expected to boost tourism. A weak pound makes the UK cheaper for overseas visitors, while it costs Brits more to go abroad and makes us more likely to opt for a 'staycation'.

Nigel Wilkinson, managing director of Windermere Lake Cruises and Winander Leisure, who also chairs the Lake District Business Task Force, said the signs for the future were good.

"We are delighted to be able to report the situation stabilised during May after the reopening of the A591.

"Up until May we had had six months of consistently being behind the equivalent period in 2015. In May we were on a par and in June we were blessed with good weather for half of the month."

He added that June's results looked better than in 2015.

He said: "There is a feeling in the industry that we have got to be positive and go on. We have got our mojo back and we are working hard to support the message."

He said the fall in the pound against the dollar and the euro could be a positive for as the cost of a visit from overseas falls. One of his staff is visiting China, Japan and South Korea to attract tourists from east Asia.

Victoria Barber-Bolam, managing director of Clarence House Hotel at Dalton, is also positive about the future.

"We deal with a lot of American and Chinese visitors so there may be a benefit," she said.

"The pound is a bit lower than it normally is. That can be good for the tourism industry and getting people into England."

Douglas Dale, the operations director of English Lakes Hotels, was equally optimistic.

The company operates five hotels in the Lake District and Lancashire, including the Low Wood Bay between Windermere and Ambleside.

"It is an improving situation," he said, adding that the floods had hit business in hotels at the start of the year.

“The weakening of the pound should ensure that we receive more overseas visitors and we also think more people may be tempted to stay at home. We only see it as a positive, we think it is good for Cumbria and good for the UK in terms of tourism.”

He said there may be a long-term concern in the industry over the ability of hotels to recruit staff from eastern European if the UK leaves the EU, but he thinks this issue will take some time to manifest itself.

“There is no suggestion that we are going to ask people to leave," he said. "We rely very heavily on eastern European staff and they are very good and I think most of them of them are here for the long-term. I do not think it is a worry in the short-term.”

Ian Stephens, the managing director of Cumbria Tourism, said: “Our role now is is to make sure we get the best possible concessions to ensure that the industry continues to prosper in the future.

“We will lobby to protect freedom of movement and freedom of travel and the ability for people to recruit from countries in the EU."