Neath Port Talbot (United Kingdom) councilors stated that encouraging campers to go camping is among the most effective methods to boost the local tourism sector.
According to a report, the councilors have expressed their desire to develop more camping provisions following the release of a report on the region’s tourism condition.
Some Neath Port Talbot County Borough councilors have expressed their desire to get more electrical hookups for campervans within the county borough to attract more people to come and visit.
Plaid Cymru councilors Nigel Thomas Hunt and Scott Bamsey were among those who stated they would like to see the possibility of creating more facilities for campers explored by the council during a Regeneration and Sustainable Development Scrutiny meeting on January 14.
In response to the council’s tourism update report, Councilor Bamsey said he thought the county borough was missing a trick in not having more provisions for campers, pointing to other areas in Wales like the Gower and Tenby, which he said is flooded with camping facilities.
“Camping and [having] campervans is a growing [trend] in the UK,” Bamsey added.
“That is the way to attract people to stay – we need places for them to go. We have got the cycling, we have got the beach. I really do think that it would be huge and extremely popular if we had the electrical hook-up facilities here.” Bamsey said.
The council’s Dramatic Heart of Wales destination marketing campaign began in September to highlight the finest of the things Neath Port Talbot County Borough has to offer and encourage more tourists to visit.
Based on the tourism update report, the campaign aims to increase the number of visitors to Neath Port Talbot attractions by 15,000 within the first 12 months following the campaign’s launch.
Destination Management and Marketing Manager Karleigh Davies stated that the council’s planning department had seen many requests from landowners who wanted to build caravans or campsites.
“We know there is demand there. We just need the private sector to come along and deliver it, and it is our job to help facilitate that, and we do,” Davies said.
Bamsey asked if there was anything that the council could do to examine the matter and asked if council members could bring additional staff to carry out the work needed to explore the viability of more camping provisions.
Cabinet Minister for Regeneration and Sustainable Development Annette Wingrave said, “It’s not always as easy as we think it is. We are working on it. There are extra resources being put in, especially for staff, because that is the issue.
“It’s not that we don’t want to do this work. It is that there are no officers there to do it,” she added.
She also said that she writes regular letters lobbying for more funding and will write to everybody she can think of, but one or two voices are seldom heard.
“You are all passionate about this, so I would suggest that you all put pen to paper and write to any relevant person you can think of [and lobby] for more funding for us as a council.”
We don’t get our fair share as far as I am concerned, and we should get more, whether that is from the Senedd or central government, and one voice is rarely heard. You can all do this,” Wingrave ended.