Meeting to set up more travel links

COUNCIL officials in Wales are meeting with ferry companies tomorrow regarding the setting-up of more links with Ireland.

Representatives from Carmarthenshire County Council in west Wales hope the meetings will enable them to set up such links as they aim to launch a major campaign over the next two years to bring in more tourists from Ireland.

Carmarthenshire’s tourism and marketing manager, Huw Parsons, said it was difficult to say how much money was being spent targeting the Irish market but added that southern Ireland is one its main tourism targets going forward.

This news comes as tourism bosses in Wales say they want Irish racing fans to help inject a major boost into the Welsh economy with the opening of west Wales’ first race course.

Ffos Las race course, near Trimsaran, is scheduled to open next year with the opening fixture planned for June 18.

Sixteen fixtures have been organised for the first 12 months — 12 national hunt meetings and four flat racing fixtures.

Businesses in the area said that one of the main tourism target markets for the county’s small and medium-sized enterprises is Ireland, with its huge racing fraternity.