ALMOST 9,000 people are now employed in the tourism industry across the five council areas of Gwent. As this year's busy season gets under way, ANTHONY LEWIS takes a look at the multi-million pound industry's importance to the area.

LATEST figures suggest tourism employs 8,698 people in Gwent – from large tourist attractions like Big Pit and Chepstow Castle, to businesses renting bikes to visitors and those who work in local B&Bs and hotels.

The deputy minister for sport, culture and tourism and the Wales Tourism Alliance have been encouraging businesses across Wales to celebrate tourism’s positive impact with events emphasising its importance to the Welsh economy.

Ken Skates AM said recently: “Tourism touches all parts of Wales and the geographical spread of employment generated by the tourism sector is one its key strengths when compared to other sectors of the economy.”

Blaenau Gwent Council held one such event at Parc Bryn Bach where local groups and businesses along with elected representatives met to discuss the challenges and opportunities for tourism in the current economic climate.

Alex Cooper is the director of Bryn Bach Bikes, a business involved in hiring out and fixing bikes and pedalos which has recently arrived in the area.

He said: “I have a vast experience of adventure activities in Scotland and now I am branching out in Wales.”

He was keen to praise the qualities of one member of his team who is from the area.

“In Rob Hunt, a local and my manager, I have an enthusiastic member of staff who knows the area and will give our customers a great Welsh welcome.”

Tourism is worth £38 million a year to Blaenau Gwent and supports more than 550 full-time or equivalent jobs.

Cllr Graham Bartlett, the council’s executive member for economic strategy and development, said: “This highlights the importance of tourism to the local economy.”

The Welsh Government’s strategy for tourism Partnership for Growth aims to invest and develop people in the industry by promoting high-quality customer service, enhancing essential and specialised skills and dispelling the idea that tourism is not a stable or viable career choice.

The latest figures from Torfaen show that £59.76 million was brought in through tourism in 2013 (2014 figures are yet to be released) and that there were 871 people in full-time or equivalent employment in the industry across the region.

Torfaen is home to the Big Pit National Coal Museum and an 18th-century iron works as well as Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre

Outdoor adventure tourism is particularly prevalent in many areas of the country with its lakes, mountains and coastal areas.

The South Wales Outdoor Activity Provider Group runs a variety of outdoor adventure services across South Wales including Monmouth and Chepstow.

They represent 200 organisations and many more staff working in outdoor tourism across South Wales. The outdoor tourism sector employs 8500 people across Wales.

Matt Woodfield, SWOAPG’s coordinator said his experience of the outdoors is “one of passion, it’s a lifestyle job.”

“The pay will never be as good as other sectors and conditions can be tough, but the rewards of spending your days outside taking people on adventures and teaching them about the world around them are fantastic.”

“What would keep us stable would be local councils continuing to invest in their outdoor education programs, a hugely valuable experience for young people and a resource that, once lost, will not be regained.”

One of South East Wales’ crown jewels for tourism is Monmouthshire’s Tintern Abbey which is run by Cadw, the historic environment arm of the Welsh Government.

From Easter, they will have 31 custodians working in the south-east region. These people will be out and about actively working on the upkeep and conservation of some of the area’s premier historical attractions.

Sian Warfield from Caerleon Roman fortress and baths described the experience of a Cadw custodian.

“It’s a very varied role. We are involved in retail as well as health and safety and promoting ourselves on social media.”

The custodians come from a range of different backgrounds including tourism management.

“The key thing is to have a real interest in history, especially Welsh history. We are all really proud of our sights and it allows us to share knowledge which improves the customer experience.

“We’ve recently started doing sessions for schools which have been great fun.”

Caerphilly offers a range of different types of tourist attractions including Llancaiach Fawr Manor, Caerphilly Castle and Cwmcarn Forest Park.

The latest data suggests that 1,575 jobs were supported in tourism by Caerphilly county borough.

This has been boosted by an annual visitor number of more than 1.67 million and a total economic impact for the year of £103.7 million.

Cwmcarn is seventh in the top 10 free attractions in Wales while Caerphilly Castle came in at 10th in the paid attractions list according to the Visits to Tourists Attractions in Wales.

Cllr Ken James, cabinet member for regeneration, sustainability and planning, said: “These excellent visitor numbers coupled with the significant economic impact in excess of £100 million is very encouraging, and proves how vital tourism is to the county borough’s economy.

With such assets as Caerphilly Castle, Blackwood Miners’ Institute, Llancaiach Fawr and Cwmcarn Forest, the county borough has the appeal to attract visitors from far and wide.”

Almost all local authorities, including those in South Wales like Torfaen and Monmouthshire participate in the Scarborough Tourism Economic Activity Monitor (STEAM) which looks at the value of tourism for the local economy.

This includes information about employment as well as visitor numbers, expenditure as well as the number of beds and vehicles.

Newport council says the industry provides more than 3,000 full-time jobs across the city. The knock-on affect of major sporting events in Newport itself and down the road in Cardiff has contributed to this number.

Such events as the Newport Food Festival, the Big Splash and Caerleon Arts Festival help to keep tourism flourishing in the city.

The latest growth of the economic impact on Newport was 16 per cent leading to visitor numbers increasing to 4.6 million which only enhances the opportunities for employment in Newport’s tourism business.

So the number of jobs combined with the amount of visitors and income tourism has brought into the economy, this has been part of a general upward trend for Newport.

The accommodation and hospitality sector also plays a considerable role in providing jobs for local people, whether in hotels, B&Bs, inns or hostels.

The Inn at Penallt is an award-winning four star inn overlooking the Forest of Dean. Manager Andrew Murphy told us that: “We are conscious of being the gateway to Wales. We want to promote Wales when people cross the border with Welsh and local produce.

He was keen on the idea of business working together to raise the profile of undiscovered secrets in Monmouthshire where his establishment is based.

When asked about the job prospects in hospitality, Mr Murphy said “I think there is a glint of light here.”

“People sometimes think it’s an easy job. It’s not. You have to be good at problem solving and you work under pressure.”

But he remained cautiously positive about the future for the profession.

According to figures from the Wales Tourism Alliance, tourism in Wales has the potential to see further future growth.

Deloitte is predicting it to have a 6.9 per cent share of Welsh GDP by 2020 and this could mean that we see as many as 188,000 people directly employed in Wales’ visitor economy.