Bridgend tourism research survey launched

A new survey has been launched encouraging residents, businesses and visitors to give their views on tourism in the Bridgend County Borough area.

Tourism plays a big part in Bridgend County Borough’s local economy. In 2019, the last ‘normal’ pre-Covid year, total visitor numbers to the borough reached 3.72 million.

The survey is seeking the views of the residents, businesses and visitors of Bridgend County Borough to identify what they feel are the strengths and weaknesses of the area, what type of activities and places do people go to when they visit the area and why, and what opportunities should be explored to further enhance the tourism experience.

The information gathered from the survey will be used to help develop a new ‘Destination Management Plan’ (DMP) for Bridgend County Borough, which sets out the aspirations and priorities of the Council for the next five years.

The DMP is a plan that seeks to bring together all those with an interest in the future of tourism in the Bridgend County Borough area, including:

• The private sector, responsible for running tourism related businesses and meeting day-to-day needs of visitors.
• Local Government departments, responsible for a range of services that impact on destination management.
• The local community with an interest in tourism related opportunities and possible impacts upon their way of life.

 Janine Nightingale, Corporate Director of Communities said: “We have a thriving visitor economy in Bridgend which celebrates the unique strengths of the place, supports jobs, generates business opportunities and improves the range of amenities available for visitors and local people. We want to continue with that success.

“This means further developing the innovative and sustainable visitor economy which is in tune with the area and brings net benefits to the local population for generations to come. In addition, we want to benefit the wider economy of the County Borough through strengthening the image of Bridgend County Borough and developing links with other sectors of the economy.

“We urge people to get involved and make their voices heard by completing the online survey”.

Links to the online survey in English and Welsh can be found here –

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/VisitBridgendSurvey

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/Arolwg_Croeso_i_Ben-y-Bontar_Ogwr

The current Destination Management Plan for Bridgend County Borough can be accessed here – Bridgend CBC Destination Management Plan 2018-2022