How tourism in Wales will emerge from the gloom post Covid-19
There could be hope for Wales’ tourism industry when lockdown ends if staycations boom. Pubs, hotels, and visitor attractions discuss their feelings and preparations for lockdown ending. Kathryn Williams reports
ASUNNY Easter, glorious May and now June looks to be positively... middling to cool. Anyone who’s holidayed at home in Wales knows that weather can mean everything to home-grown tourism and, if not for lockdown, it would have had a bumper start to the 2020 holiday season.
But it is what it is, and as Wales’ lockdown message to stay local continues, we’ve seen empty beaches, closed car parks and closed attractions.
Hotels, B&Bs, campsites, pubs and activity destinations have been dormant in terms of customers and holidaymakers, but what of the time when we can ease lockdown and the country slowly starts to emerge from the post-Covid-19 gloom?
It’s hoped that the desire for staycations will multiply, not least because we can’t go abroad in the near future, unless we want to spend seven days of a holiday to Greece in quarantine.
And the tourism world is starting to get restless, with a signed letter from Welsh Association of Visitor Attractions to the Welsh Government pleading for a “roadmap” to reopening as the season gallops along at what seems like an alarming pace.
The letter – signed by more than 40 leisure industry bosses from a range of high-profile tourist destinations including Snowdon Mountain Railway, Zip World and the National Botanic Garden of Wales – warns of “writing off 2020 for Welsh tourism” without a clear roadmap to reopening, such as those published in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
England’s Culture Minister, Oliver Dowden, said last month that they had a “very ambitious plan” to get English tourism up and running by the beginning of July.
We’ve spoken to some of the key services in the Welsh tourism industry – including attraction Zip World, B&B and campsite owners, hotels and pubs – for their take on getting Wales reopened, how they are preparing for social distancing and how promising the staycation situation is actually looking.
The Pub/Restaurant with Rooms – Inn at the Sticks, Llansteffan
Possibly the most enthusiastic pub owners despite 10 weeks of lockdown are trio Ben Ball, Sam Jackson, and Dino Callegari at Carmarthenshire pub Inn at the Sticks.
Only taking on the pub at the start of 2020, the three are buzzing to get back to work welcoming tourists and have used their time prepping new menus, maintaining the gardens and doing DIY jobs.
“We’re doing the jobs that need to be done,” added Ben, 32. “Maintaining the gardens, lots of painting.
“We’ve been making the most of it. Looked after the staff by furloughing them, when a lot of companies have had to get rid of their staff, we put ours first and looked after them.
“People are getting by and the best thing is people can’t wait to get back to work and get this industry rocking and rolling again, the passion is flying about.”
It certainly is and Ben is convinced that the sector will be up and running by August, if not July.
“When I hear the news dwelling on businesses saying the sh*t has hit the fan, I think a lot of businesses pull the plug. But if you don’t think about the profit margin and think about the business you’re in, and getting through these tough times, what’s happening next and when pubs can open again, it’s the good stuff that’s to come.
“Welsh tourism is going to be booming, Carmarthenshire is growing and growing, that’s another reason why we’ve all come back to Wales to get stuck into what Carmarthenshire has to offer.”
You can’t help but feel enthused by the Inn at the Sticks team’s positive attitude, but the small cove village has become increasingly popular over the years and the county is positioning itself as a tourist hotspot with links to Dylan Thomas and BBC drama Keeping Faith, with a fantastic coastline to boot.
“Fingers crossed, but I said from the day this started, we would open up in July and then we’d be off. If not July then 100% August,” added Ben.
It’s not just enthusiasm keeping the team going, Ben, Sam and Dino have plans for social distancing and hygiene for when they do welcome customers, contacting restaurants on the Continent about post-lockdown life.
Sam, who has been mastering his lockdown sourdough recipe and planning new menus, said some tables will be removed to ensure distancing, there’ll be a booking-only service and they will pay close attention to government guidelines when they are released.
He added: “We have looked at the plans of the pub and looked at implementing an adequate walkway which customers will follow. And we’ll introduce a queuing system for the bar area.
“Sanitising stations will be available throughout the building. We will laminate all menus, which will be easy to sanitise after every use. Also PPE equipment will be given to all workers on shift. Guest rooms will be sanitised and deep-cleaned after each guest leaves.”
Ben concluded: “We’re been productive as well – we’ve not just been drinking all the stock that’s going out of date!
“It’s a small business, there are so many elements that will keep you going. You can either just clean everything or you can go and find things to do that refresh the business.”
The Attraction – Zip World
With sites across north Wales, including Zip World Forest, Penrhyn Quarries and Slate Caverns at Blaenau Ffestiniog, Zip World is at the heart of Welsh tourism and director Sean Taylor is getting increasingly frustrated with the lack of indication to reopening the country to tourists.
“My colleagues in England are working to a date in July and we’re not in Wales,” he said. “All I’m asking for is a date in the diary, but subject to change. At the moment I have a couple of million pounds’ worth of deferred income, which is from loyal customers. But as soon as we are not open in July and August people will go elsewhere.”
But on the flip side Sean and his team are keeping both busy and positive so that when they can open they are ready for the new world order of post-coronavirus tourism.
“Hopefully when we start in early July we are hoping to do six out of our 12 products and we are going to socially distance, have new hygiene protocols, signage.
“We’ll be looking at how we take the bookings, potentially not taking bookings on the day.
“You’ll have to pre-book, we’ve got a skeleton team in now for the best
part of two and a half months planning this. We’re not going to ruin our brand and reputation by having 1,000 people on the first day.”
With virtual run-throughs and a friends and family day planned, Sean adds that the sites can turn things around and open five days after the sector is given the go-ahead.
Despite his passion to get Zip World back open, Sean is aware that things have to be done at the right time.
“I’m passionate about the tourist sector in Wales, so we have all this massive support from the community – they want us back, they want the tourists back but they want it at the right time,” he added. “We’re a longterm business so want to make sure what we do is sustainable.
“We want to make sure we are doing it right, but it’s confusing, it’s all different in Scotland, Wales, England – you’ve got people packed on the Tube side by side like sardines, on Bournemouth beach (in England) and we have wide-open spaces.
“But we are taking it extremely seriously for our staff, for our customers and for our community. We’re asking for a bit of trust.”
The Campsite and Cottages – Wynd Hill Hideaway Camping and Cottages, Manorbier
The Jones family – Russell, Llinos, Evan and Macsen – have been at Wynd Hill in Manorbier for almost three years.
The first year they spent redoing the three cottages on site, opening to the public late in 2018, and 2020 was due to be their year to make a profit and really dig into finishing those personal touches, making their Wynd Hill dream come true.
Former primary school teacher Llinos and aeronautical engineer Russell have been keeping busy with improvements to the nine-acre site but are under no illusion that 2020 is more difficult than they’d ever imagined.
“If he hadn’t had his job now we probably wouldn’t survive the pandemic, we’ve not made a profit yet and we’ve put so much money into it,” said Llinos, who explained they took the plunge and moved down west to give their sons the best childhood they could.
“This year was the first year we were due to turn a profit. We had tons of people cancel, we were booked out for Easter, for May and May half-term we had all three cottages booked for the week for a 40th birthday celebration – but they are now coming next year.”
For some, the lockdown might have seen them throw in the towel, but Wynd Hill is Russ and Llinos’ dream – and they’ve been making the most of it while being buoyed by the reaction of customers.
Llinos, from Tenby, adds: “We’ve been surprised at how sympathetic people are when cancelling and reassuring us, saying ‘we really will book with you next year’.”
And while Llinos is confident of a staycation boom, she’s cautious that, with the unpredictability of a virus, things are changing at a swift pace.
She said: “We’ve had lots of people getting in touch about bookings, but I think people are concerned about being disappointed by having to cancel – because we are offering a full refund.
“But I do think there will be a big boom in the staycation culture. Lots of people have been messaging us saying they want to support small businesses and stay in Britain because a lot of people like us might not survive otherwise.”
Planning for safety measures coming out of lockdown has also been one of the tasks the couple have completed.
Despite there being no guidance for campsites or self-catering accommodation they have ensured that in the future there will be contactless check-in, via text, contactless payments, reduction in pitch numbers – from 15 to 10 – extra toilets, increased cleaning and extra hand-sanitiser dispensers.
But while Wynd Hill is prepping for lockdown loosening, the effects will be felt by Llinos and Russ for a good while yet.
“We’re going to lose a year so in the long term we had things we wanted to do, but everything’s going to take that much longer,” added Llinos.
The B&B – The Oasis, Llandudno
Ed and Carole Hart own the Oasis Bed and Breakfast, Llandudno, and their 15-room Victorian bed and breakfast is waiting patiently for the holidaymakers to return to one of Wales’ most popular resorts.
“It’s the most fantastic little town. We looked at many places in Wales and this stood out a mile – it found us, I think,” said Ed, who is from the Midlands originally.
He and Carole, both in their fifties, are all too aware of the pandemic’s far reach.
“We balance the desire for everything to get back to normal again with the concern that if we do it too quickly we haven’t got control, or we’ve not beaten the virus so it could get out of control again.”
With their staff furloughed, other than one who unfortunately joined the business too late to qualify, the couple used their time in lockdown to sort things out financially, then managed to start on improvements while they had no guests to look after.
“We’ve been taking advantage of the time and painted the front of the hotel, which is a big job, there was a wall that needed rebuilding, the rooms needed some work – when you’re talking about a building that was built in the 1860s there’s always something to do.”
There’s no denying that Llandudno was built for tourists, and Ed finds it a bit disconcerting.
“Suddenly everyone is locked up in their own building and we overlook the promenade, and to look down and see it deserted is a very strange thing; it was a bit like being in a zombie movie,” he said.
So how will a B&B that can take up to 35 guests run in a post-pandemic world? Ed says the building is spacious enough so that people can easily socially distance; for example, on the landings or stairwells.
“We are waiting to see what the advice will be.”
Ed concluded: “There’s always an element of risk and we appreciate that and we know you can never completely eliminate the risk, there’s a balance.”
The Hotel – Holm House, Penarth
The luxury hotel in the Vale of Glamorgan is taking on board the fact that staycations will be the holiday of choice this year.
General manager Dan Jones acknowledges that the tourism industry in Wales has taken a “battering” but the boutique hotel is staying positive and preparing for when the country can start treating itself again.
He said: “The hospitality and travel industry has really taken a battering as a result of the coronavirus and the sooner we can get back on our feet the better.
“If we do experience a boom it will be a welcome relief for the tourism industry and will also help to secure the future safety of hospitality jobs, an industry that represents a whopping 10% of UK employment.”
Dan continued on how Holm House would implement social-distancing measures, including contactless check-in and encouraging inroom and al-fresco dining.
“We’ll only reopen once our facilities and operations have been adapted to meet government protocol and we’re confident it is safe to do so.
“We can’t wait to reopen our doors and offer the hospitality services the public have missed so much.”
what tourism body Visit Wales has to say...
The message from Visit Wales, which promotes our country as a tourist destination, has been “come back later when the pandemic is over” as the official advice is to avoid unnecessary travel.
This has applied to visitors from outside Wales, and Welsh citizens are now advised to travel around five miles to exercise within their locality.
A spokesman for the body said tourism in post-pandemic Wales would look very different, and was cautious about predicting a staycation “boom” for the industry in the coming months.
“Tourism in a post-pandemic Wales will be very different – it can’t be business as usual,” he said.
“Whilst the need to get back up and running to generate income and safeguard jobs is vital, we will not put people at risk.
“A gradual and cautious approach will be taken when it is safe to begin to open up tourism attractions and rural Wales again.
“Safety comes first and safeguards and measures will remain to reduce risk and give our communities and visitors alike confidence.”
The spokesman mentioned that Visit Wales, which is run by the Welsh Government, was looking into an “‘extended season” after feedback from those in the industry, and appealed for more long-term funding from the UK Government for help with the broader Welsh economy.
He added: “We are committed to doing everything possible to support and have been working with the tourism industry, which is why we already have a range of support packages in place.
“We are providing a comprehensive £1.7bn package of support for businesses in Wales, which includes the Economic Resilience Fund – this goes over and above the support available elsewhere in the UK and complements schemes, such as the Job Retention Scheme, provided by the UK Government.”