Giant photo frame enjoyed by thousands

THOUSANDS of people from across Swansea Bay and far beyond put themselves in the frame over Easter weekend.

Figures show almost 4,000 visitors to Rhossili Bay and Swansea Bay promenade had their photos taken in a giant frame with the beauty spots in the background from Friday to Monday.

Swansea Council’s tourism team made the giant photo frame available as part of the #SwanseaBayMoments campaign aimed at ensuring that the destination remains firmly on the visitor map across the world. Visitors from Lithuania, Australia, Finland, New Zealand, Singapore, South Africa and Mississippi were among those to join in the fun.

People who took photos were encouraged to upload them and share them on social media websites like Twitter and Facebook, using a Swansea Bay Moments hashtag. This helped lead to an almost 70% increase in the number of visitors to the official http://www.visitswanseabay.com destination website compared with Easter 2014. Close to 400 people also subscribed to the Visit Swansea Bay newsletter over the four-day weekend.

Cllr Robert Francis-Davies, Swansea Council’s Cabinet Member for Enterprise, Development and Regeneration, said: “The giant photo frame is an example of the many innovative ideas our tourism team is continuously putting in place for the benefit of local residents, visitors and the destination as a whole.

“Not only did it give people from all over the world a memento of their trip to Swansea Bay, but it also raised the profile of the destination because of the number of visitors who uploaded their photos and shared them on social media. This led to far more people checking out our official destination website, which we hope will lead to more visits in future and, importantly, increased spending in our local businesses.

“This idea shows what can be achieved by working in close partnership with organisations and businesses like the National Trust and 360 Beach and Watersports Centre. The promotion proved to be so successful and popular that we’ll consider re-introducing it again later this year when major events are held in the city.”

Leaflets were also handed out at Rhossili and Swansea Bay promenade, giving people the chance to win two tickets for Paolo Nutini’s Singleton Park concert on June 20, lunch at Café TwoCann and an overnight stay at Swansea’s Marriott Hotel. The prize draw will shortly take place.