Snowdonia tourism tax ‘needed to attract right kind of visitors’
COUNCIL LEADER SAYS VISITORS SHOULD PAY UP
A COUNCIL leader believes a tourism tax is the only way to expand the local infrastructure to accommodate Gwynedd’s booming visitor economy.
Dyfrig Siencyn believes Gwynedd’s taxpayers should not be expected to underwrite facilities used by holidaymakers.
In the autumn, a tourism tax, or levy, for those staying overnight in Wales, will be considered in a Welsh Government consultation. The proposal has divided many within Welsh tourism but Cllr Siencyn said it was the only solution for councils grappling with stretched budgets.
In an interview with S4C’S current affairs programme, Y Byd ar Bedwar, he said he wants to attract the “right kind of visitor” - those staying overnight and not day-trippers, who bring their own food and contribute little to local economies. But providing the necessary infrastructure comes with a cost, he said.
“The council, like every other council, has to work within a tight budget,” said Cllr Siencyn.
“There is a solution to that problem by charging a tourist tax. Why should Gwynedd’s taxpayers have to pay for visitor facilities? Shouldn’t these visitors contribute towards the facilities they need? When we have to squeeze our budget, we have some very difficult choices to make.”
Before the Covid pandemic, 7.8 million people visited the area in 2019, up 11.6% on the previous year.
Since then, visitor numbers have climbed again, though there are signs the staycation boom may be ebbing this year now that overseas destinations are open again.
One of the communities most affected by the trend is Llanberis, in Snowdon’s shadow. Brynrefail-born Eric Baylis, a volunteer for Keep Llanberis Tidy, comes across human faeces in the village almost every weekend as the public toilets are closed overnight.
He would like to see the council invest in more bins and toilets that are open 24 hours a day that would cost 20p to use.
“We see all this stuff promoting the area now,” he said. “But nothing is being done about the infrastructure. No bins, no toilets. I don’t know where we’re going with all of this. The council needs to get its act together in Llanberis.” He believes a tourist tax will solve many of the village’s problems.
“It won’t cost a fraction of the tourists’ spending in the village,” he said. “They’re paying for the hotels, paying for going in the cafes and for using the tourist facilities here.
“Well, a pound a night is nothing!” The Welsh Government has yet to propose the cost of a tourism tax. Such levies are used in other parts of the world and rate vary widely: in Bulgaria, visitors pay EUR0.10 a night, in Belgium, it’s as high as EUR7.50.
Around 18,000 people work in Gwynedd’s tourism sector.
One is Marian Williams, who is wary of expanding her Ty Newydd campsite and cafe on the Llyn Peninsula as she has struggled to find local people to work there.
She’s worried a tourism tax will place the business under further pressure. “There’s more paperwork,” she said. “Then people feel like, “well no, Wales wants to take more of our money, we’ll stay in England”.
“I don’t think it’s a good time to do anything extra now. Where will the money go? Often, when things are done, the money goes to places like Cardiff - we don’t see any of it.”
Capel Curig farmer Elwyn Jones, who farms on Moel Siabod, has been left frustrated by the amount of trespassing on his land.
“Picnic tables and everything go down there,” he said, pointing to the Afon Llugwy, which runs through his farm.
“We’ve had bags full of rubbish, BBQS, clothes and cans of beer all dumped there.”
Over the past year he’s been collecting evidence of trespass, filming encounters with people swimming in the river.
On one occasion, with around 80 people on the riverbank, he called the police. Despite this, only half left.
“It’s so frustrating,” he said. “If the police can’t move them on, I’ve no hope.
“The fact is, they shouldn’t be here there are warning signs.
“They show no respect here, none. It’s a playground for the tourists but we have to make a living here.”
Some holidaymakers say they would be happy to support the local economy through a tourist tax.
“It’s a doubled-edged sword,” one visitor told Y Byd ar Bedwar.
“I don’t mind paying if it helps towards the community but we also contribute towards the local economy - we have a meal every time we come down here.”
Others are less supportive: “I don’t think it should be introduced at all, but I feel that if they do it now, I feel such a large majority of people will choose elsewhere to visit in the UK.”
Another agreed: “If the taxes were put on, then obviously we woud choose different places to stay that would be more economical as a family.”
Y Byd ar Bedwar is on S4C on Mondays, 8pm. Old programmes can be watched on iplayer - this episode first appeared on Monday, June 20.