No doubt the headline to this blog will be music to the ears of all the Walesonline language bashers out there, but I am a little concerned about the perception some locals are having about what they are getting out of having the Maes for the week, and all it entails.
The main problem lies in the false belief that town centres will be packed by thousands of new faces from across the nation. This simply does not happen. However, this does not mean that a host town or community does not gain significantly - in all sorts of ways that initially are hard to quantify. As an analogy, look at how our capital has benefited from huge sporting events. Local shops complain that on the day, their business is actually down but the repeat visits from 'new tourists' are hugely significant and apart from all the accommodation being booked up for months and many local businesses actually doing very well out of the Eisteddfod, Wrexham has put itself on the map with people who have never previously been here. Myself along with my family are a good example. We will have stayed here for 8 days by the time we leave, we have never stayed here before and our eyes have well and truly been opened about the wealth of industrial and cultural history in the area. I confess that we sneaked off for a couple of days to local attractions and although we may well not be back in the near future here for a long family holiday, we will certainly consider a short break as there is much we would still like to see and re-visit.
So, my advice to the Eisteddfod on future sites is to sell what locals can quantify rather than what they can recognise as not a reality. The danger is that communities will start to become less favourable towards welcoming the Eisteddfod, not because they actually gain less than they think but because they are led to believe that the gains are instant for all. This misconception will help no-one but the language haters, so let's not give them an excuse.
A CONSEQUENCE OF CHANGE...
5 days ago
Was Wrexham not previously 'on the map'?
ReplyDeleteThe only Eisteddfod that I recall where the Maes was just a short walk from the Maes was Portmadog in 1987.
ReplyDeleteI seem to remember the streets of Port were covered in plastic Pint glasses. So perhaps itmay be for the best Eisteddfodwr are spread out a bit more.
The Eisteddfod probably benefits the area around the main venue to a greater deal than we know.
Democritus. To many who attended this week, this was certainly their first stay here so in that context, no.
ReplyDeleteGlynbeddau. The evening venues are usually local which helps, but I suppose that the additional facilities on the Maes have somewhat segregated the visitors from the locals.