What is the Welsh Government doing to promote eco-friendly tourism for tourists and service providers?
We promote responsible and sustainable tourism across the sector through responsible messaging, promotional activities and our capital investment schemes.
Sustainability is the heart of our current strategy, Welcome to Wales. This strategy sets out how we want to develop tourism that does good, that supports our communities and cares for and protects our land and that provides year-round sustainable jobs in all parts of the country.
Visit Wales promotes eco-friendly breaks on its social media and on its website, from opportunities to take part in ‘voluntourism’ while on holiday to profiling businesses that prioritise sustainable practices in their offer and enhance their eco-tourism experience for visitors.
In addition, Addo (the Wales Promise) includes messaging that encourages responsible behaviour, for example, by asking visitors to choose sustainable transport options and support local businesses such as food producers while on holiday.
The Sustainable Tourism Wales website provides resources and case studies for Welsh businesses wanting to improve their sustainability.
The £5 million Brilliant Basics fund for 2023-25 is helping to deliver small-scale infrastructure improvements in strategically important tourism locations across Wales. One of the four key areas supported is the development of environmentally sustainable destinations and we have funded infrastructure improvements to help to reduce a destination’s carbon footprint.
We also have a £50 million Wales Tourism Investment Fund, which enables us to finance capital investment in projects that grow the sector and have a positive impact on the Welsh economy. Every Wales Tourism Investment Fund-supported business commits to the Economic Contract. Decarbonisation is one of the four pillars of the Economic Contract and a business must evidence how the project and its operational plans will help reduce its carbon footprint. These development pledges (e.g. solar panels, biomass boilers, zero waste, EV charging points, use of local suppliers) are monitored throughout the compliance period.