A new drive has been launched to turn North Wales into a “world class” destination for visitors.
The Destination Management campaign is a “key building block” of a strategy to increase the value of the £2 billion a year industry which employs 40,000 people in North Wales.
It is being masterminded by Tourism Partnership North Wales, the organisation responsible for the strategic development of the area’s visitor economy, who are investing a total of £250,000 in the initiative.
The aim is to create an Excellent Visitor Experience so that people want to return again and again – and tell their friends and family to come here too.
Working with the six local authorities in North Wales, the ultimate goal is to make the region a top five UK destination for visitors.
As well as sprucing up our towns and villages, the campaign will include marketing, research, developing social media, learning journeys and profile-raising PR.
Dewi Davies, the Regional Strategy Director of Tourism Partnership North Wales, said: “It is a vital step for North Wales to improve the quality of the visitor experience, across the whole of the region and in every local authority area.
“The counties of Conwy, Anglesey and Wrexham have already published their Destination Management plans and work is at an advanced stage in Gwynedd, Denbighshire and Flintshire.
“The idea behind Destination Management is to look at the kind of experience a customer gets currently and researches into how that can be made into a very memorable experience.
“Our aim is to make sure the customer will come back and also that that visitor will tell great stories to their friends and people online.
“First of all it is important to establish what brings people here in the first place, whether it is our mountains, coastline and heritage.
“We have some really world class assets in the form of Snowdonia National Park Authority or the three Areas Outstanding Natural Beauty.
“Equally, we’ve got world class heritage site with the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and the castles at Beaumaris, Caernarfon and Conwy.
“Whether the customer comes here to enjoy an outdoor experience or a heritage experience, we must fulfil and exceed their expectations.
“First impressions are important so it is vital that the signage is right and there is a sense of place when people arrive.
“We need to make sure the quality of information good, the environment is tip-top and that the accommodation, the attractions and the activity experiences are up to scratch.
“In each area, we have a partnership of representatives from the public and private sectors who meet four times a year to make sure the Destination Management programme is on track.
“It is a huge challenge because we are in an extremely competitive market place.
“Communities such as Belfast and Northern Ireland are investing hugely in their tourism offer and we see new communities which might be only a two-hour flight away from Liverpool, Manchester or Birmingham, all competing for our customers from those large cities.
“What we have to do is ensure we have a high quality product and provide a brilliant visitor experience.
“We have a strong belief that our Destination Management plans, where we can identify the things that we can do better to improve experience, can provide the uplift to make North Wales a far more competitive place and fight for our market share within a very, very busy and crowded market place.
“Our aim is to be one of the top five destinations in the UK – it’s about people coming here and getting a good experience first time around so that when they go home they spread the word.
“The idea is that they keep coming back and that they persuade others to come here as well.
“The visitor economy is the life blood of the regional economy and the importance of the destination management project should be viewed in that context.
“We need to be world class – the potential rewards are massive.”