New figures have revealed a 36.6% rise in the number of tourism day visits to Wales in 2016, benefiting from Sterling’s comparatively low value.
According to the Tourism Day Survey, in the 12 months ending December 2016 there were 10.2 million tourism day visits – with a spend of £4,096 million.
It means a 36.6% increase in visits to Wales (compared to 2015), with a 50.9% rise in associated spend.
However, there are concerns that the Welsh Government’s marketing strategies are failing to cut through to the visiting public, with Welsh Conservatives warning that Welsh tourism may not be reaching its full potential.
Recent figures, for example, showed that just 1-in-7 UK day visitors were aware of Visit Wales’ ‘2016 Year of Adventure’ campaign – with 63% of those stating that it had no influence on their decision to visit the country.
Commenting on the statistics, Shadow Economy Minister, Russell George, warned the Welsh Government to guard against complacency.
He said:
“The weakening pound has seen a huge rise in day visits to Wales over the last year, contributing more than £4bn to the Welsh economy.
“However, these figures don’t provide the full picture and it remains deeply concerning that Visit Wales’ promotional campaigns don’t seem to be cutting through.
“Sterling remains low and the Welsh Government’s marketing strategies must capitalise on favourable conditions.
“We need to build on a successful 2016, reaching more parts of the UK to show what Wales has to offer.”
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