A tourism survey which revealed that more than 10 million British visitors headed to Wales last year has been warmly welcomed by an independent tourism organisation based in Mid Wales.
Anne Lloyd-Jones, chairman of Machynlleth-based MWT, which represents around 600 tourism and hospitality businesses across Powys, Ceredigion, South Gwynedd and South Wales, is hoping for more of the same this year and keeping her fingers crossed for a hot Summer.
“The tourism figures for 2014, showing a record breaking 10 million people from across Britain staying in Wales, are excellent and hopefully can be matched or surpassed this year,” she said. “The good Summer weather definitely helped and it would great to have a repeat this year.
“Speaking for Mid Wales, we have so much to offer with the coastal path, excellent attractions, wonderful scenery, quality accommodation and a warm welcome that brings visitors back year after year.”
The visitor figures for Wales, contained within the Great Britain Tourism Survey, bucked trend for the UK as a whole. It revealed that the number of trips to Wales in 2014 was up 0.7 per cent on 2013, compared to a UK fall of seven per cent.
The amount spent by British visitors was £1.735 billion, the highest on record, holiday visits were up 4.4 per cent in terms of trips and up 7.7 per cent on associated spending.
Further good news came from the International Passenger Survey, which showed a 14 per cent rise in overseas visitors, compared with the same period in 2013, rising to 795,000 and associated expenditure was up six per cent to £303 million.
The Welsh Government’s Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Ken Skates, described the figures as “absolutely fantastic” and said they showed that Wales was ahead of the game.
“Getting to 10 million visitors is an important milestone and Wales is gaining market share,” he said. “The success is due to the incredibly hard working people we have in the industry in Wales who make sure that our visitors have an outstanding experience and want to return time and again.
“I hope that these figures give the industry further confidence and that we can build on this success.”
