A Brief History of Snowdonia National Park
Contents
Introduction 2
Method 6
Data Presentation 10
Data Interpretation 20
Evaluation 31
Bibliography 35
Introduction
A Brief History of Snowdonia National Park
Snowdonia National Park was established in 1951 and covers an area of 2,142 square kilometres (827 square miles). The park mainly consists of several ancient mountain ranges. These mountain ranges were formed by volcanic activity, and they were eroded during the Ice Ages. The highest of these is Yr Wyddfa Fawr (1,085m/3,560ft) one of the five peaks of the Snowdon Massif (or Mount Snowdon).
Map 1.1 - Snowdonia National Park (The red square shows the location of Betws-y-Coed)
There are many different roads leading into the park, which bring in visitors from other parts of the country. The A470 will bring in visitors from the South and South West ( and probably South Wales). The A55 and A543 will bring in visitors from the North, North West and North East (especially Liverpool, Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield).
Map 1.2 - The area surrounding Snowdonia National Park
Looking at Map 1.2, there are good transport links to the Park from other areas of the United Kingdom. For example, there is the M6 bringing in people from Manchester, Liverpool and Birmingham. The M4 brings in people from London and the surrounding area.
What Is Tourism?
Tourism is a multisectoral activity that requires inputs from many industries - agriculture, construction, and manufacturing and from both the public and private sector to produce the goods and services used by tourists. It has no clearly determined boundaries and no physical output; it is a provider of services which in range will vary between countries.' Another more concise definition is: Leisure time activity generally defined as involving an overnight stay or more, away from home.
What Are Tourists?
All types of visitor engaged in tourism are described as visitors, a term that constitutes the basic concept for the whole system of tourism statistics; the term visitor may be further subdivided into the same-day visitors and tourists as follows: visitors are defined as people who travel to a county rather than in which they have their usual residence but outside their usual environment for a period not exceeding 12 months and whose main purpose of the visit is other than the activity remunerated from within the place visited; same-day visitors are visitors who do not spend the night in a collective or private accommodation in the country visited; while tourists are visitors who stay in the country visited for at least one night.
The Importance of Tourism Globally
By the year 2000 tourism would become the world's major economic activity, surpassing even the trade in oil and manufactured goods. It is an important factor in the economy of most developed countries and is seen by many developing countries as the one possible way to obtain income and to create jobs. Globally, there were 500 million tourist arrivals in 1996, even including domestic tourism.
Why Does Snowdonia National Park And Betws-y-Coed Attract Tourists?
Snowdonia National Park attracts tourists because there are a great number of recreational activities available in the park, such as climbing, hill walking, fishing and sightseeing. Hill walking is especially popular, as Snowdon is the highest mountain in Wales. People who do not fancy walking to the top of Snowdon can catch the railway line that runs up the mountain. This generates money which can be used to pay for the maintenance and upkeep of the line.
In small towns, such as Betws-y-Coed, there are a great number of services for the tourists, such as tea shops, outdoor shops (which sell outdoor equipment), souvenir shops and so on. This makes Betws-y-Coed a honeypot site. A honeypot site, is, like the name suggests, a place where tourists all swarm to because of the great variety in things to do and see in that particular place. Other honeypot sites include Keswick in the Lake District, and Hathersage in the Peak District. A honeypot site will generate the bulk of its income from tourism, and possibly will have spent that money on a facility for the tourists, such as a new car park, or a souvenir shop, or a café.
This is the primary reason that tourists visit Snowdonia, to see the beautiful scenery:
Figure 1.1 - The summit of Snowdon, 1,085m high. Snowdon is the highest mountain in Wales.
Honeypot sites, however, do have a problem. The principal problem is traffic. Many visitors to honeypot sites come by car. (In Keswick's case, almost all of the visitors come by car - there is no railway station). This means that the streets will be clogged up full of traffic, and car parks will dominate the landscape. Cars create air and noise pollution.
Tourism in Betws-y-Coed and other areas has only sprung up in the last 20 or so years. An efficient motorway and road network in the United Kingdom means that less time is spent driving. On a clear driving day, from Sheffield to Betws-y-Coed, it will probably take 21/2 - 3 hours, because there is a good road network. Another reason is that more people own a car nowadays. Almost every family in the United Kingdom has a car, many families have 2 cars and some even have 3 or more. Therefore, more people are using their cars to get around the place, and driving is cheap and practical.
In Betws-y-Coed, I aim to look at the impacts of tourism on Betws-y-Coed and how Betws-y-Coed has reacted (in other words, measures put in to control tourists). I will conduct a traffic survey, a pedestrian survey, a litter survey and a building survey. Also, I will interview tourists on the street, to find out how they came to Betws-y-Coed, where they are staying and what they have purchased in Betws-y-Coed.
I am asking the following questions:
* How has tourism impacted on the local economy?
* How has Betws-y-Coed reacted to the tourists?
* What are the drawbacks to tourism in Betws-y-Coed?
* Is traffic an issue?
Method
To find out all of my data for this project, I had to do a variety of things. They include:
* Walking around Betws-y-Coed and noting down the buildings. [Building Survey]
* Standing in a designated spot for 30 seconds and counting the number of pedestrians. [Pedestrian Survey]
* Standing in a designated spot for 15 minutes and counting the number of cars travelling West (towards Snowdon) and the number of cars travelling east (towards Liverpool and Manchester). [Traffic Survey]
* Surveying the amount of litter in a designated spot. [Litter Survey]
* Interviewing passers-by on the street and asking them how long they are staying in Betws-y-Coed, why are they staying in Betws-y-Coed and what they have bought. [Pedestrian Survey]
* Comparing grocery store prices between Sheffield and Betws-y-Coed. [Own initiative]
* Counting the number of cars in the main car park in Betws-y-Coed. [Car Park Survey]
* Comparing petrol prices between Sheffield and Betws-y-Coed. [Own initiative].
As mentioned above, I aim to find out the impacts of tourism on Betws-y-Coed. This includes how Betws-y-Coed has reacted to tourists, e.g. what measures they have taken to control the number of tourists.
Betws-y-Coed is the most popular destination in North Wales. Betws-y-Coed, not only being an attractive village, is also very near Snowdon, which is good for walking and climbing. Therefore, there are a large number of outdoor shops in Betws-y-Coed.
I chose the Own Initiative because I wanted to find out the differences between the prices. Because Betws-y-Coed is quite a deserted place, I predict that simple groceries such as bread, milk, eggs and so on will be more expensive than they are in Sheffield.
I aim to collect my data in the following ways. For the building survey, I will sketch out a rough map of Betws-y-Coed but straightening the streets, and marking each tourist related building and giving it a letter, A for accommodation, OS for outdoor shop and so on. The full list is with the building survey.
For the pedestrian survey, at 11:00, I will stand in my designated area and count the number of pedestrians passing an imaginary line in front of me for 30 seconds. This result will then be recorded down in a master table, which is below.
For the litter survey at my designated site, I will do a sweep of a 10m radius from where I am standing and rate the litter on a scale, which ranges from +3 to -3. +3 means that there is no litter at all, 0 means there is some litter, but overall, it is quite clean, and -3 means there is lots of litter.
The traffic survey will be conducted in much the same way as the pedestrian survey, except it will take place for 15 minutes instead of 30 seconds. I will count the cars going west (towards Snowdon) and the other person in my pair will count the cars going east (towards the A543, which takes cars to Liverpool, Manchester and so on). The traffic survey for my pair will be conducted at 12:45 - 13:00. Usually, around lunch-time there are fewer cars, because many people have parked in the car parks and are currently having their lunch. The period from about 10:30-11:30 usually gets the most cars because that is when people arrive in Betws-y-Coed and find somewhere to park.
For my second pedestrian survey I will interview passers-by on the street, and ask them a few questions on what they have purchased and where they have come from. Below is a sample of the survey (with one extra question added by me):
. Have you already been interviewed today?
2. How long have you been staying in Betws-y-Coed?
3. What kind of accommodation are you staying in?
4. Have you bought anything in Betws-y-Coed? If so, what?
5. Why did you choose to visit Snowdonia National Park?
6. How ...
This is a preview of the whole essay
For my second pedestrian survey I will interview passers-by on the street, and ask them a few questions on what they have purchased and where they have come from. Below is a sample of the survey (with one extra question added by me):
. Have you already been interviewed today?
2. How long have you been staying in Betws-y-Coed?
3. What kind of accommodation are you staying in?
4. Have you bought anything in Betws-y-Coed? If so, what?
5. Why did you choose to visit Snowdonia National Park?
6. How did you get to Betws-y-Coed? *
* added by me
Pedestrian and Litter Survey
The pedestrian and litter survey were conducted in exactly the same spot. Each group was given a designated spot in Betws-y-Coed, and was asked, at 11:00, to do the pedestrian survey, which means counting the number of pedestrians that pass in a 30 second time period.
The litter survey was ranked on a scale, from -9 to +9. Anything in negative numbers means that there is a fair amount of litter in that site, and anything in positive numbers means that there is little or no litter at all in that site.
Map 1.3 - The location of my pedestrian and traffic survey.
Figure 1.2 - The location of my pedestrian and litter survey. The picture is looking east.
Figure 1.3 - The location of my pedestrian and litter survey. The picture is looking west.
Traffic Survey
The traffic survey was conducted in a 15 minute time period by every single group in the same place. One person counted the cars travelling west (towards Snowdon) and another person counted the cars travelling east (towards Liverpool, Manchester and so on)
Map 1.4 - The location of the traffic survey (black arrow)
Data Presentation
Traffic Survey
I predict that the period from about 11:00-13:00 will have the most cars, because that is when many people have just arrived in Betws-y-Coed and are trying to find somewhere to park.
Map 1.5 - Although not shown on the above map, the black square indicates the main car park in Betws-y-Coed (and certainly the biggest).
The following graph shows the number of cars going east, the number of cars going west and the total number of cars in the main car park:
Time
Total Traffic Moving West
Total Traffic Moving East
Total Traffic
Total In Main Car Park
9.30-9.45
ARRIVED AT 9.40
ARRIVED AT 9.40
ARRIVED AT 9.40
ARRIVED AT 9.40
9.45-10.00
95
42
37
66
0.00-10.15
08
43
51
85
0.15-10.30
33
72
205
88
0.30-10.45
20
57
77
90
0.45-11.00
15
53
68
08
1.00-11.15
22
61
83
25
1.15-11.30
35
65
200
34
1.30-11.45
20
53
73
38
1.45-12.00
37
67
204
50
2.00-12.15
75
60
235
80
2.15-12.30
18
59
77
57
2.30-12.45
62
66
228
38
2.45-13.00
29
57
86
05
3.00-13.15
29
81
210
58
3.15-13.30
33
60
93
46
Pedestrian Survey
Site Number
Pedestrian Survey
0
2
0
3
0
4
0
5
2
6
0
7
8
8
9
5
0
7
1
2
0
3
0
4
2
5
1
6
7
7
9
8
21
9
5
20
6
21
1
22
0
23
4
24
0
25
0
26
0
27
0
28
0
29
0
30
31
4
32
33
34
2
35
7
36
5
37
7
38
5
39
0
Noise Survey
The noise survey was conducted by two members in the group using a sound level meter. The sound is measured in decibels (dB). To give the data below a sense of perspective, here is a chart of common decibel readings and their relevance:
Decibels (dB)
Examples
20
Falling leaves
40
Normal conversation
80
Traffic
00
Thunderstorm
20
Rock concert
40
Rocket take-off; permanent damage to hearing
Site Number
Noise Survey (dB)
70
2
70
3
63
4
70
5
< 50
6
63
7
67
8
57
9
51
0
< 50
1
< 50
2
< 50
3
55
4
52
5
55
6
62
7
55
8
< 50
9
63
20
66
21
62
22
55
23
< 50
24
< 50
25
< 50
26
53
27
< 50
28
< 50
29
< 50
30
< 50
31
60
32
67
33
60
34
65
35
65
36
60
37
58
38
68
39
62
Litter Survey
Site Number
Litter Survey
8
2
-1
3
5
4
-2
5
3
6
5
7
8
8
8
9
6
0
3
1
-1
2
4
3
4
4
5
5
7
6
7
-1
8
7
9
8
20
6
21
6
22
9
23
9
24
9
25
8
26
8
27
9
28
9
29
9
30
5
31
5
32
8
33
-1
34
-1
35
7
36
8
37
4
38
7
39
8
The following pictures were taken at my designated litter spot in Betws-y-Coed:
Figure 1.4 - The only large piece of litter in my area, a plastic Pepsi bottle.
Figure 1.5 - The pavement and the road - notice the absence of litter.
Figure 1.6 - The road. Note small pieces of paper (circled) in background.
Interviews
Area from?
Total
How Long?
Total
Accommodation
Total
Purchase
Total
Why
Total
Scotland
3
day
52
B & B
27
Souvenir
44
Scenery
87
North
1
2 days
42
Hotel
40
Food
72
Hiking
60
N.East
7
3 to 5
38
Self
6
Clothing
32
Climbing
5
N.West
37
6 to 7
1
Camp
8
Outdoor
42
Canoeing
East
7
> 7
9
Caravan
21
Books/News
20
Shopping
22
Midlands
36
other
YHA
7
Other
4
Other
25
E.Anglia
6
Other
7
S.East
21
S.West
4
N.Wales
9
S.Wales
5
N.Ireland
Ireland
3
Int.
3
The data for the area can be put into a Spearman's rank table:
Region
Number
Rank
Average Distance Travelled (miles)
Rank
Difference Between Each Rank
D Squared
North
1
4
30
9
5
25
N.East
7
6=
200
6
0
0
N.West
37
90
2
1
21
Midlands
36
2
00
1
9
81
Southeast
21
3
200
6
3
9
East
7
6=
210
5
N.Ireland
1
220
4
7
49
Ireland
3
0=
40
8
2
4
E.Anglia
6
7
230
3
4
6
N.Wales
9
5
50
3
8
64
S.Wales
5
8
20
0
2
4
Scotland
3
0=
350
9
81
S.West
4
9
275
2
7
49
Total
?d2 504
Spearman's Rank is worked out using the following formula:
R = 1 - 6?d2
n3 - n
n = number of pairs of data used [in this case n=2]
d = difference between ranks squared
? = total
I interviewed 6 people, but I added one extra question, "How did you get to Betws-y-Coed?" This question produced the following results:
Mode of Transport
Number of People
Car
5
Train
0
Coach
0
Mini-bus
Air*
Other
0
* - One person who I had interviewed had flown to Manchester Airport from Luchthaven Amsterdam Schipol and hired a car to Betws-y-Coed.
Own Initiative
My own initiative, as explained above is to compare grocery store prices between Betws-y-Coed and Sheffield. The list below is a list of common items on a shopping list, and how much they would cost in Sheffield, then in Betws-y-Coed:
Product
Betws-y-Coed
Sheffield
More or less expensive?
White Sliced Bread
£ 1.03
£ 1.03
Same price
Pint of Semi-Skimmed Milk
£ 0.40
£ 0.40
Same price
Pint of Full Cream Milk
£ 0.40
£ 0.40
Same price
6 Free Range Eggs
£ 0.98
£ 0.99
More expensive
Medium Sized Sausages (Locally Produced) [kg]
£ 4.40
£ 3.96
Less expensive
2 Litre Bottle of Coca-Cola
£ 1.59
£ 1.45
Less expensive
Packet of Butter
£ 0.88
£ 0.84
Less expensive
Strawberry Jam
£ 0.99
£ 0.99
Same price
Packet of Cheese (200g)
£ 1.29
£ 1.19
Less expensive
Biological Washing Powder (Daz)
£ 2.79
£ 2.70
Less expensive
Washing Up Liquid (Fairy)
£ 1.09
£ 0.99
Less expensive
McVities Chocolate Digestive Biscuits
£ 1.26
£ 1.26
Same price
Dairy Milk (Cadbury's)
£ 0.42
£ 0.40
Less expensive
Tomato Ketchup (Heinz) [460g]
£ 1.39
£ 1.28
Less expensive
Yoghurt (Welsh)
£ 0.41
£ 0.45
More expensive
Smoked Bacon (English) (buy 1 get 2 free)
£ 2.29
£ 1.99
Less expensive
Unsmoked Bacon (English) (buy 1 get 2 free)
£ 2.29
£ 1.99
Less expensive
25g Jar of Marmite
£ 1.58
£ 1.42
Less expensive
250g Jar of Nutella
£ 1.09
£ 1.09
Same price
Packet of Cigarettes (Lambert & Butler)
£ 4.22
£ 4.22
Same price
Mineral Water (Evian)
£ 0.79
£ 0.79
Same price
Can of Beer (Boddingtons)
£ 0.89
£ 0.89
Same price
75cl of Ernest & Jullio Gallio Red Wine
£ 4.79
£ 4.67
Less expensive
Apples (kg)
£ 1.45
£ 1.34
Less expensive
Bananas (kg)
£ 1.25
£ 1.08
Less expensive
Oranges (each)
£ 0.18
£ 0.18
Same price
Carrots (kg)
£ 0.40
£ 0.39
Less expensive
Tomatoes (pack)
£ 0.79
£ 0.79
Same price
Potatoes (kg)
£ 0.81
£ 0.79
Less expensive
Cabbage (kg)
£ 0.65
£ 0.69
More expensive
Mushrooms (kg)
£ 3.96
£ 3.80
Less expensive
Orange Juice
£ 0.59
£ 0.79
More expensive
Apple Juice
£ 0.59
£ 0.79
More expensive
Total
£ 47.93
£ 46.03
The shopping list cost £47.93 in Betws-y-Coed, but only £46.03 in Sheffield. This is a saving of £1.90. If we plot this on a graph:
By looking at the above, one can see a considerable difference between the prices in Betws-y-Coed and Sheffield. Although the price difference is only £1.90, it is quite a difference. This doesn't give me much of a clue. It would be interesting to see what price the shopping list comes out as in central London.
Petrol Prices
The only petrol station in Betws-y-Coed was on the road out of the village, and was a Shell station. I compared this to my local petrol station, a BP station.
Petrol Type
Betws-y-Coed (p/litre)
Sheffield (p/litre)
Unleaded
83.9
79.9
4 Star
83.9
79.9
Diesel
81.9
78.9
Autogas
NA
36.9
The petrol is slightly more expensive in Betws-y-Coed than in Sheffield.
Bargain Hunt in Betws-y-Coed
Whilst in Betws-y-Coed, I spotted the following advertisement for BBC Bargain Hunt:
As Bargain Hunt is quite a popular programme, this may entice tourists to visit Betws-y-Coed, and therefore boosting the local economy. This may have accounted for the large amount of traffic entering Betws-y-Coed from the west.
Mobile Phone Reception
Despite the fact I was in a town which is surrounded by hills, I still maintained full mobile phone signal. This occurred on 5 different networks. This is strange because usually, when one is surrounded by hills, one usually doesn't get signal on one's phone. I think that money has been put into building a new mast in the Betws-y-Coed area.
Near to my litter and pedestrian survey site, I found a solar panel, which was near a street light. This solar panel is providing electricity for the street light, and therefore reducing dependency of electricity:
Data Interpretation
Own Initiative
The prices were taken from the following shops:
* Betws-y-Coed: Londis, Spar
* Sheffield: Spar, local butchers
Map 1.6 - The location of the grocery store in Betws-y-Coed.
As mentioned above, my own initiative was to compare grocery store prices between Sheffield and Betws-y-Coed. My original thought was that the prices would be slightly higher in Betws-y-Coed, because it is quite an isolated place (apart from a good road network linking it to other parts of Wales) and goods have to be shipped in specially. However, I thought that meat and dairy products would be cheaper because they would have been produced locally, Wales has a reputation for farming.
Several of the above thoughts were backed up by evidence. Overall, the shopping list is £1.90 cheaper in Sheffield than in Betws-y-Coed. However, some prices were quite interesting and surprised me. Firstly, the cigarettes were the same price both in Sheffield and Betws-y-Coed were the same price, because the Government puts a standard tax on all tobacco all around the country.
The bottle of wine is slightly cheaper in Sheffield, but the beer is the same price. Beer is usually the same price wherever you go, but the wine is quite expensive because, firstly, it has been imported in from abroad and, secondly, it has to be taken to Betws-y-Coed specially, which probably puts the price up slightly.
The sausages quite surprised me. The sausages from Betws-y-Coed were locally produced using free-range pork and cost £4.40 per kilo. However, the sausages from Sheffield were locally produced as well, using free-range pork, but cost £3.96 per kilo, a saving of £0.44. It is a surprising difference, even though both products are virtually the same thing. I think it is due to the sausage producers, maybe they charge a higher price for their sausages.
Probably the most surprising price difference between Sheffield and Betws-y-Coed was the orange and apple juice. In Sheffield, the orange and apple juice costs £0.79 per 1 litre carton and in Betws-y-Coed, the orange and apple juice costs £0.59 per 1 litre carton, a saving of £0.20. I picked the store's own brand apple and orange juice, but I found a price difference on the same item which is interesting.
The petrol prices were more expensive in Betws-y-Coed at the time I visited, May 2004. Recently, the petrol prices have increased to the Government, but I found that petrol was slightly more expensive in Betws-y-Coed.
Pedestrian Survey
The obvious assumption for the pedestrian survey is that the areas in the centre of Betws-y-Coed where the shop density is the thickest will have the most pedestrians. This is confirmed in the isoline map above and the results from the pedestrian survey.
Looking at the isoline map, you can clearly see that most of the pedestrians are concentrated in the CBD (Central Business District) of Betws-y-Coed. The CBD in Betws-y-Coed consists of all the restaurants and accommodation and most of the shops. The largest section, shown in yellow, indicates the areas which had 0-5 pedestrians in 30 seconds.
If one looks at the area which says "8", there is a long extended area down to the 8. This is because at the site where "8" is marked, there is a large outdoor store, selling walking and climbing gear. This type of shop will probably receive the most income in a year, because Betws-y-Coed is situated in Snowdonia National Park, which is popular for walking and climbing. More serious climbers can tackle the
The following map shows a small building survey of Betws-y-Coed, which clearly indicates where the shops and main services are in Betws-y-Coed. This backs up my statement about the pedestrians.
[Taken from www.betws-y-coed.net]
The red arrow shows the location of the traffic survey, the blue arrow shows the location of my pedestrian survey and the yellow arrow indicates the main car park in Betws-y-Coed.
Restaurants
While wandering around Betws-y-Coed, I stopped at a hotel with a restaurant at 12:00. When I walked past it at 12:30, 30 minutes later, the restaurant was almost full:
This image reflects the following graph:
As you can see, there is a distinct "valley" at 12:15-12:30, showing that many people are either looking around Betws-y-Coed or eating lunch at one of the many restaurants in Betws-y-Coed.
The aqua-blue line, representing the total number of cars in the main car park starts to rise from 9:45 to 12:15. This is because many people are arriving in Betws-y-Coed and parking their cars in the main car park.
The "valley" at 12:45-13:00 is probably because some people are leaving Betws-y-Coed, having eaten lunch and looked around the shops, and are now driving east towards Snowdonia. This is represented by the slight increase in traffic moving east, shown on the graph above.
We can also see, if we link the data from the traffic survey with the data from the car park survey, the two lines almost follow each other exactly. This can be seen clearer in the following graph:
The two lines almost follow each other exactly. This shows that there is a relationship between the total number of cars in the main car park and the total number of traffic.
Noise Survey
The noise survey was taken using a sound-level meter at various sites in Betws-y-Coed. Naturally, I would assume the spots which lie on the A5 and in the centre of Betws-y-Coed to be the noisiest, because that is where the traffic is densest.
Interviews
I expected the most visitors from the North-West and West, because both areas have excellent motorway links with Betws-y-Coed. The map indicates the most probable route from the West to Betws-y-Coed, and the estimated driving times:
The following table shows the estimated driving times from selected cities (based on the following driving speeds: 120kph - motorways; 80kph - A roads; 60kph - B roads; 50kph - streets)
City
Distance from Betws-y-Coed
Time Taken
Birmingham
74km
2 hours 9 minutes
Cardiff
269km
3 hours 34 minutes
Edinburgh
472km
4 hours 47 minutes
Gloucester
255km
2 hours 48 minutes
Hull
304km
3 hours 7 minutes
Leeds
216km
2 hours 19 minutes
London
359km
3 hours 46 minutes
Manchester
48km
hour 46 minutes
Plymouth
490km
5 hours 1 minute
Sheffield
213km
2 hours 31 minutes
Looking at the table above, the closest major city to Betws-y-Coed is Manchester, which is only 13/4 hours away. According to the table below, the most number of visitors came from the North-West, so my predictions are correct.
Area from?
Total
How Long?
Total
Accommodation
Total
Purchase
Total
Why
Total
Scotland
3
day
52
B & B
27
Souvenir
44
Scenery
87
North
1
2 days
42
Hotel
40
Food
72
Hiking
60
N.East
7
3 to 5
38
Self
6
Clothing
32
Climbing
5
N.West
37
6 to 7
1
Camp
8
Outdoor
42
Canoeing
East
7
> 7
9
Caravan
21
Books/News
20
Shopping
22
Midlands
36
other
YHA
7
Other
4
Other
25
E.Anglia
6
Other
7
S.East
21
S.West
4
N.Wales
9
S.Wales
5
N.Ireland
Ireland
3
Int.
3
A large number of people came from the South-East. Many people were probably from London, coming up to Wales for the weekend, seeing as it was a Saturday when we visited. According to the driving times table, London is only about 4 hours from Betws-y-Coed, but there are excellent motorway links from London to Betws-y-Coed:
The above map shows a suggested quick route from London to Betws-y-Coed. The route takes the M1 up to Coventry, then the M42, then the M54, then the A5 (Watling Street) straight into Betws-y-Coed (which the A5 passes through).
The route is almost entirely motorways, and because of this fact, people visit Betws-y-Coed from London.
I would expect the majority of people to visit for one day, because, unless you are a serious walker or climber, you probably wouldn't like to stay in Betws-y-Coed for more than one day.
Most of the people stayed for one day only, but quite a few people stayed for 2 or 3-5 days. We need to have a look at another graph - where are these people staying?
Betws-y-Coed is full of hotels and B&B's, especially on the A5 out towards Waterloo Bridge. There is also a youth hostel. Surrounding Betws-y-Coed are many caravan and camping parks, and, whilst walking through Betws-y-Coed, I saw quite a few cars with caravans attached.
[The term, "Self" means Self-catering]
40 people who were interviewed stayed in a hotel. This is probably because there are lots of hotels in and around Betws-y-Coed. B&B's came in second, with 27 people staying in a B&B. There were probably many more, because a lot of the B&B's which I saw in Betws-y-Coed had "No Vacancies" signs in the windows.
Betws-y-Coed, apart from being full of hotels and B&B's, is also full of shops. Many of the shops were selling artefacts for tourists, Welsh wool products, food and climbing and outdoor gear. I predict that souvenirs and clothing will sell the most - outdoor gear can be purchased in towns.
Food was the main purchase. Most of the shops (such as souvenir shops) were selling ice creams out of a freezer near to the till. Because it was a hot day, ice cream sales were high, therefore this might have boosted the food value.
The souvenir value, as I predicted, is the second highest. Although it is quite personal, it would be interesting to see what items people have bought. Many people will have bought either clothing or souvenirs such as Welsh wool products.
Outdoor items such as climbing and walking gear were quite popular, because Betws-y-Coed is so close to Snowdon. There were several outdoor shops in Betws-y-Coed, and a large one on the A5 heading towards Waterloo Bridge.
For the question, "Why have you visited Betws-y-Coed?", I would expect the majority to be either scenery or walking. These activities are very popular because Betws-y-Coed is very close to some of the most spectacular scenery in the United Kingdom. Snowdonia National Park is the second largest park in England and Wales, after the Lake District. In 2001, over 20 million people visited Snowdonia National Park (that is more than the population of the Netherlands).
I can summarise the above results by plotting a pie chart, using percentages:
[Total number of people surveyed - 210]
Reason Why
Percentage (%)
Scenery
40
Hiking
29
Climbing
7
Canoeing
Shopping
1
Other
2
It is easier to draw a pie chart from percentage rather than raw data because many people picked more than one option, and this may have altered the processed data slightly.
I added one question to the original survey, "How did you get to Betws-y-Coed?". I added this question because I thought it silly to do a tourism survey, and not to find out how this person had got to Betws-y-Coed.
Mode of Transport
Number of People
Car
5
Train
0
Coach
0
Mini-bus
Air*
Other
0
I interviewed 6 people for the above question. A Dutch person had flown from Schipol Airport (Amsterdam) then hired a car and drove down to Betws-y-Coed (this is what the asterisk is denoting).
If we work out the percentage for each value:
Mode of Transport
Percentage (%)
Car
71
Train
0
Coach
0
Mini-bus
4
Air
4
Other
0
[Values do not add up to 100% due to rounding]
The reason that most of the people drove to Betws-y-Coed is because there are good transport links with the rest of the country. Despite the increasing petrol prices, driving is still the most practical way to get from A to B. Even though the car park prices in Betws-y-Coed are a lot higher than other car parks around the country, people will still pay money to park their car.
Evaluation
Overall, I found that I got successful data that backed up my original predictions very well. I was surprised how easy it was to interpret the data, because it was so clear and apparent.
I thought that by adding the extra question to the survey would give some interesting results. Even though I thought that 100% of the people came by car, I still got some interesting results. Even though Betws-y-Coed has a train station, which is probably connected to the main train routes, no one came to Betws-y-Coed by train. Perhaps because it is quite expensive, or maybe no-one has the inclination to go to Betws-y-Coed by train.
Some of the methods used in obtaining this evidence were slightly unreliable. Therefore, I have summarised all the methods up in the following methods table, but I have outlined the main limitations with the methods.
Data Collected For...
Why was it collected?
How was it collected?
Evaluation of the methods or problems/limitations with methods
Car Park Survey
The car park survey enabled us to see which times the most tourists were in Betws-y-Coed. If we link the data from the car park survey with the data from the car park survey, we can see when the vast majority of tourists arrive in Betws-y-Coed.
The data was collected straight after the traffic survey. When a pair had finished collecting data for the traffic survey, they walked to the main car park and counted the number of cars in the main car park, which was just round the corner from the location of the traffic survey.
Some groups may have missed cars or not counted correctly, because they stood at one end of the car park instead of walking around the car park and counting each car individually. Apart from this, there are virtually no flaws with this survey.
Pedestrian Survey
This data shows the most popular areas of Betws-y-Coed. It shows us how many tourists there are and shows us the problems with having too many tourists. This data can be connected with the litter survey.
The survey was taken at the same time, 11:00 at a designated site in Betws-y-Coed (the same site for the litter survey). At 11:00, each student counted the number of pedestrians passing the site on both sides of the road for 30 seconds.
There were no problems with this survey because it is so simple. Some people in the busier areas might have counted the same person twice, but the fact it was done for only 30 seconds reduces the chances of catching the same person twice.
Litter Survey
This survey was taken so we could see what effect tourists have on the local area. Seeing as the title for this piece of work is "The Impact of Tourism on Betws-y-Coed", it is sensible and good practise to study something that explores the title of the assessment.
The data for the litter survey was taken straight after the pedestrian survey at the same site. At their designated site, each student had to perform a 360o eye sweep of a radius of 5 metres, and assess the litter on a scoring system from -3 to +3 to show how clean the site is.
The major problem was that the data from this survey was very much based upon each individual's opinion, and not as a joint decision. It would have been better for each student to go to each site in Betws-y-Coed, and perform an individual assessment of each spot - the problem with this is that we didn't have enough time.
Traffic Survey
This data was collected to show us how popular Betws-y-Coed and the local area are. The data from the traffic survey provided a useful insight into when the busiest times in Betws-y-Coed were.
The traffic survey was taken at the same spot throughout the day. One person counted the number of cars going west (towards all the major cities) and one person counted the cars going East (towards Snowdonia National Park) for 15 minutes. The survey was taken between 10:00 and 14:00.
The problem with the traffic survey was that it is not a reliable source of information for telling us how many of the cars that passed stopped in Betws-y-Coed, or in Snowdonia National Park itself. We could have also counted the same car twice, and also, it does not tell us what type of vehicles pass through Betws-y-Coed (e.g. lorries, cars, bikes etc.). However, it does give us a vague idea of how popular the area around Betws-y-Coed is.
Petrol Prices
This data was collected to find out if petrol in a remote rural environment is more expensive than petrol in an urban environment.
The petrol prices survey was taken at a garage on the way out of Betws-y-Coed, at a time which suited me.
This survey is virtually flawless, because there is nothing in it that could go wrong.
Interviews
This information was collected to help me answer my target questions, set in the introduction, above. Through the interviews, I found out how the area and the location of Betws-y-Coed is involved with tourism, how tourism has impacted the local economy, if there were any drawbacks to tourism and is traffic a major issue in Betws-y-Coed.
My interviews were performed between 12:00 and 13:00 when I felt there were the most tourists. My questionnaire sheet had an added question on it.
The methods used in collecting this data were very simple, and I had little problems with it. There was no worry of interviewing the same person twice, because at the start of the questionnaire, we asked them whether or not they had already been interviewed. There is, however, one limitation. If I had asked the same questionnaire in July or August, at the height of summer, I would have got very different results. Because it was the Bank Holiday weekend, many people decided to go for one day, but, if I had asked the same questionnaire in July or August, I would have got very different results - people would stay longer.
Grocery Store Prices
The data was collected to find out if local shops were more expensive, so they could generate more money, or if goods were more expensive in a rural environment.
The data for this survey was collected in two convenience stores. I asked the shop owner if he/she didn't mind me walking around noting down prices. For some prices, like wine and tobacco, I had to ask the shop owner.
Some of the brand names weren't available in the Sheffield store, so this presented a problem, seeing as I had to find the closest possible alternative. A lot of the meat and dairy products were from Wales, therefore, back in Sheffield, I had to compare those prices with prices from traditionally outdoor-reared meat from my local butchers. This may account for a difference. Another problem is that in the store in Betws-y-Coed, there was a special offer on one of its products I looked at, so this may have caused a slight error in the final result.
Noise Survey
The noise survey was taken to see where the most noise pollution was coming from. We can then link this with the tourist hot-spots in Betws-y-Coed.
This survey was taken by a selected pair who had a noise level meter, which measured the noise level in decibels (dB). They went round each site and measured the amount of noise there was, and recorded this result down in a table.
The major problem with the noise survey is that we didn't have a noise level meter for each individual person. Therefore, we couldn't measure the noise all at the same time and we might have got an inaccurate result. It took the pair quite some time to walk around Betws-y-Coed, and by that time, the traffic may have died down significantly. Some results might have been taken before all the tourists have arrived in Betws-y-Coed.
If I go back to my original questions, I can now answer them.
Q. How has tourism impacted on the local economy?
Tourism has increased the local economy significantly. Many people in Betws-y-Coed are employed in providing services to the tourists, whether it be serving ice-creams or working in a souvenir store. Locals in and around Betws-y-Coed will be employed in the shops and restaurants. However, these jobs are seasonal and "weather-permitting". Many people visit Betws-y-Coed in the summer, and this will generate thousands, possibly even millions of pounds. However, in the winter, there will be very little input from tourism, because it is low season, therefore the people who work in Betws-y-Coed will certainly have jobs elsewhere in the area. I noted that by the railway station, there was a line of new shops and restaurants. I am guessing these buildings were partly funded by money from tourism.
Q. How does the location of Betws-y-Coed influence numbers of visitors?
I already know that Betws-y-Coed lies in the heart of Snowdonia National Park, and, having visited Cwm Idwal and the Nant Ffrancon Valley the previous day, I know how beautiful the scenery is. Betws-y-Coed is in the proximity of Cwm Idwal, the Nant Ffrancon Valley, Snowdon and the mountain railway. Snowdonia National Park is a climbing and walking hotspot, therefore some shops in Betws-y-Coed sell outdoor equipment and climbing gear. Many visitors come to Snowdonia National Park to see the outstanding scenery (this is echoed in the data from my interviews). However, Betws-y-Coed is quite far from major motorways, therefore this might influence the number of tourists. Honeypots near major roads may receive more visitors than Betws-y-Coed, and honeypots near major cities may receive more visitors. For example, Keswick in the Lake District is only 32km from Carlisle. Castleton in the Peak District is only 20km from Sheffield. The nearest major city to Betws-y-Coed is Manchester, so this fact may influence the number of visitors.
Q. What are the drawbacks to tourism?
The drawbacks to tourism are more apparent when you enter Betws-y-Coed. There are hardly any shops for the locals, who live in Betws-y-Coed. Almost all the shops are tourist-related. The only shops the locals will find useful is the convenience stores and the newsagent. There is one major drawback to tourism - litter. Wherever tourists go, they create litter, and in some places, litter can be a serious problem. In some honeypot sites, schemes have been put in place to try and reduce the amount of litter, for example, Malham in the Yorkshire Dales. The problem is also apparent in other areas. Walking on footpaths creates erosion, and so does climbing. Some people choose to not stick to the designated path and walk on the grassy banks, therefore damaging them.
Q. Is traffic an issue?
The local council in Betws-y-Coed are trying desperately to control the number of cars through Betws-y-Coed. There is one main car park, but it quickly fills up throughout the day, and some people double park or illegally park their cars. Along the A5 which runs through Betws-y-Coed, there are double yellow lines and warning signs. Despite this, there are still too many cars. According to my data above, over 70% of all the visitors arrive by car. A shuttle bus service does run into Betws-y-Coed, but it is hardly used by the visitors. The main car park does have a separate park for coaches, but most of the visitors arrive by car. The data above shows that none of the visitors arrived by public transport. Traffic is a major issue in Betws-y-Coed, and, if further measures aren't taken soon, Betws-y-Coed will soon turn into a Welsh version of London before the congestion charge.
However, there are solutions to the traffic problem in Betws-y-Coed. Park and ride schemes do operate, but, unfortunately, there is hardly any land surrounding Betws-y-Coed to build one on. Because of the limited space, no new car-parks can be built.
Bibliography
The maps seen on pages 2, 3, 20, 25 and 26 are courtesy of Microsoft MapPoint 2003. (c) Microsoft Corporation.
The maps seen on pages 7, 9 and 10 are courtesy of www.multimap.com
The map seen on page 22 has been taken from www.betws-y-coed.net and reproduced with permission.
All pictures were taken by me using a Kodak DC290 Digital Camera - 3.1MP resolution.
The graphs were drawn using Microsoft Excel 2003.
Typeset using Eurostile 12pt.
Section headers - Eurostile Bold 20pt
Divider Headings - Eurostile 14pt
Word Count:
7,433 words
James Cull GCSE Geography Coursework Page 1 of 35
Birkdale School Centre Number: 36528
