Welcome to Llanrwst, North Wales

Hoteliers launch campaign for hospitality VAT of 5% : " The head of budget hotel group Travelodge is leading a campaign to reduce VAT for the hospitality sector to 5 per cent ahead of the London Olympics. "

Join our VAT-cut campaign : " The Government has only to look at France to see why a tax reduction on food would help create jobs and lower prices for consumers, says Paul Charity. "

Service with a smile ;): Tourist information centres face extinction : "Tourist information centres face extinction: ' TICs closing across UK as council funds favour websites to attract visitors – but locals are ..."

Tourist information centres face extinction : " TICs closing across UK as council funds favour websites to attract visitors – but locals are not giving up without a fight They were Britain's response to the package holiday; a network of Tourist Information Centres funded by the government to divert vacationers from the sunny lure of the Costas toward domestic destinations. Forty years on they are battling to survive. Usurped by the internet, now the final death knell for many is being sounded by accountants from cash-strapped councils. TICs are vanishing from high streets. The clear message is 'adapt or die'. But communities desperate to save this local asset are not giving up without a fight. A raft of recent closure threats include centres in the Cornish tourist hot spots of Falmouth, Penzance and St Ives, while in Wiltshire five are under review, including Salisbury. In Gwynedd, the council has estimated losing three centres will save £76,000 per year, blaming the i...

VisitBritain tourism agency to cut jobs : " National tourism agency to axe 70 jobs and close its offices in 13 countries as government cuts bite VisitBritain , the national tourism agency, is to cut up to 30% of its staff and close its offices in 13 countries just as it prepares for an expected rise in overseas visitors generated by the royal wedding in April and the Queen's diamond jubilee and the London Olympics and Paralympics next year. Some 70 jobs will go in the UK and abroad as the agency reacts to a four-year fall of 34% in its government grant to just over £21m in 2014-15. It hopes to attract 30 million tourists and business visitors this year, spending £17bn, although the credit crunch and economic uncertainty mean earnings will fall short of a 2006 peak. The agency will not have a visitors' centre in London once its lease in Regent Street expires early next year. Talks are taking place with the London assembly and other agencies over whether they can provide tou...

Conwy County News: Solo exhibition in <b>Llanrwst</b> for Welsh artist : "WELSH artist Jacqueline Janine Jones brings her solo exhibition to Ffin-y-Parc gallery in Llanrwst this week. Often described as obsessive, the West Wales ... topics.treehugger.com/article/03Nn4MFg1tae9 "

Visit Wales There have been reports in the press recently on The Department for Culture Media and Sport’s (DCMS) tourism strategy and the proposal to phase out official grading to be replaced with a consumer-led system like TripAdvisor. In response to these articles and subsequent media coverage on the subject, we’d like to make it clear that any recommendations regarding grading in the DCMS tourism strategy, to be published later this year, will only be relevant to  England.  The Welsh Assembly Government does not have any current plans to withdraw the official grading scheme operated by Visit Wales. The Visit Wales Quality Assurance Scheme has more than 6500 participants. Internet sites such as Trip Advisor are powerful tools for potential customers who are actively looking for a holiday to research their plans. We’ve held discussions with the industry on the possible role that social media and user generated content can play as part of a visitor's decision making process. ...