Tourism website attracts worldwide audience

ALMOST half a million people have visited Carmarthenshire’s tourism website in the last year looking for places to stay, things to do, and to browse a growing range of local produce being promoted online.

Discover Carmarthenshire is Carmarthenshire County Council’s dedicated tourism information service, and more and more people are visiting to find out about the variety of things they can see and do whilst visiting the area.

The numbers of people visiting www.discovercarmarthenshire.com have tripled since 2019 – with people from America, China and Australia among those contributing to over 1.2million annual page views.

In the last month alone, over 28,000 people visited the website with almost 71,000 page views across the site.

The growing number of web hits come on the back of a successful winter tourism campaign that has been picked up by travel writers and bloggers from all over the world.

The campaign centred on the unique Carmarthenshire ‘cwtch’ and listed 10 ideas for cosy winter breaks, from cwtching up under the stars to dog-friendly attractions for people to cwtch up with their four-legged friends.

The council’s tourism team said it is encouraging to see the increasing interest in Carmarthenshire as a holiday and visitor destination, given that the industry has had such a difficult two years.

They are now calling on local businesses to take advantage of the growing audience. Accommodation providers, event organisers, local producers and retailers can all upload information to the website for free, putting their business centre stage to visitors from all over the world.

Cllr Peter Hughes Griffiths, the council’s Cabinet Member for Culture, Sport and Tourism, said: “It’s no surprise that we are reaching out to a such a wide audience – we know that we have something unique to offer and the tourism team have been working hard to spread the word about Carmarthenshire.

“We have just completed a very successful winter tourism campaign which has seen us gain huge media and online coverage and that is obviously starting to translate into bookings.

“The tourism and hospitality industry has been hit hard by Covid with lockdowns and restrictions having a massive impact on trade and it’s so encouraging to see the signs that things are picking up again.

“Tourism plays an essential role in Carmarthenshire’s economy. Every visitor helps boost our local businesses, from accommodation providers to cafes and restaurants, shops, attractions and services – that investment continues to grow and make a difference locally.

“But the important thing to remember, is that we’re not just interested in attracting tourists from outside the area – we’re just as focused on encouraging Carmarthenshire people to enjoy the fantastic places we have right here on our doorstep.

“Spend your free time doing something different, visit somewhere new, treat yourself to some local produce – it won’t just be an enjoyable experience, you will be helping support local people and businesses.”

Visit www.discovercarmarthenshire.com for hundreds of inspirational ideas of places to stay, things to do, places to explore, a varied what’s on guide and over a hundred local retailers.