BLUESTONE PLANS EXPANSION FOR COVID BOUNCE BACK
ONE of Wales’s best tourist attractions is set to expand as it aims to bounce back from the impact of coronavirus which has cost it more than £17m.
Bluestone National Park Resort, near Narberth in Pembrokeshire, has suffered a tumultuous 12 months since the outbreak of Covid-19, as have most businesses in the hospitality and leisure sectors.
In 2019, the resort welcomed almost 155,000 visitors to its 500-acre site.
This meant that 97% of its 344 lodges, studios and cottages were full on average across the year. In 2020, however, it was a different story, with the resort admitting that the past year has been “incredibly challenging”.
In 2020, hospitality sales fell by an incredible £17.5m as a direct result of the pandemic and, rather than welcome guests and tourists to a particular corner of West Wales, the site became the home of field hospital Ysbyty Carreg Las thanks to a partnership with Hywel Dda University Health Board.
Despite the turmoil caused by coronavirus, however, Bluestone wants to invest in improving the attraction rather than tightening its belt as we begin to emerge fully from what will hopefully be the final period of lockdown.
With staycations in the UK set to boom as uncertainty remains around the ability or will of people to travel overseas, the resort has said it is “determined to invest further, to expand its offering, increase local jobs and support the regional and West Wales economy”.
In light of this, the goahead has now been given to build 80 superior, environmentally-sensitive self-catering lodges, which will represent an investment of £15m. The plans were first mooted last year and an application was submitted in March.
Last week, the resort secured unanimous positive decisions from Pembrokeshire Coast National Park and Pembrokeshire Council’s planning committees to press ahead with the development once planning permissions have been formally issued.
The decision means that 250 jobs will be created in the construction phase of the project, while 90 jobs will be on offer at the park once the development is completed.
According to the park, the new lodges will increase the business’s own spending in the surrounding area by up to £1.5m a year, while extra visitors who explore Pembrokeshire while staying at the resort will boost the local economy further by up to £1m a year.
The resort’s head of projects, Liz Weedon, said Pembrokeshire could take advantage of the staycation demand in the wake of Covid, and Bluestone is excited to be a part of that with its ability to cater for a greater number of guests.
“We are really pleased to have the resolutions approved and we are very excited about the lodge development, which cements Bluestone’s firm commitment to further investment, job creation and supporting the wider regional economy,” she said. “It has been a very challenging year for everyone in the industry; we are proud and privileged to be based in Pembrokeshire and see real potential for the county to benefit significantly from staycation demand in the future.”
“We are looking forward to taking forward our proposals, which will be a very significant investment in tourism for Pembrokeshire and Wales.”