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Stunning Wales stars in International campaign to celebrate Wales’ Year of Adventure

A new TV advert which is part of a multi-platform marketing campaign from Visit Wales will be seen on TV screens across the UK this evening as the new campaign goes live.

  • New campaign features iconic Welsh locations – and faces
  • International campaign will run in Wales, UK, Ireland and Germany
  • Campaign fully-produced by Welsh creative agencies and talent

This campaign is the latest move to make Wales a leading global destination for adventure tourism as part of the Welsh Government’s Year of Adventure 2016.

The tourism industry in Wales saw record growth in 2014 and reports from 2015 are showing further growth. The Year of Adventure has got off to a great start with Wales and its attractions  been listed by an unprecedented number of global media outlets - from Rough Guide to Lonely Planet to Forbes - as a must-see place to visit in 2016.

The campaign, which also boasts five additional online films, will be targeted primarily at the UK, Ireland and Germany will encourage those seeking an adventure to ‘find their epic’ in Wales during 2016.

The new campaign has been conceived and created by a Wales based creative collective led by Visit Wales and Smörgåsbord with their award winning creative director Dylan Griffith. The TV advert is directed by Wales’ most prolific film director, Marc Evans, shot by Luke Jacobs from Pembrokeshire and is produced by Robert Light and Orchard Media and Events Group. The music was specially composed and produced by John Hardy and the team at Cardiff-based John Hardy Music.

On the main campaign concept and strapline ‘Find Your Epic’, creative director, Dylan Griffith elaborates:

“Epic has always struck me as a very Welsh word, and we were determined to include it in some way as it perfectly surmises what we have on our doorstep here in Wales. The adventure sector has been expanding at a rate of knots over the past 15 years and is truly world class. By inviting people to find their epic here we’re making it personal – and the hope is that people from all corners of Wales and the world will share their epic Welsh experiences digitally. The invitation is inclusive and needn’t involve an adrenalin-fuelled activity, after all everyone has their own unique idea of ‘epic.”

This £4million major multi-channel campaign includes television and  cinema advertising in the UK and Republic of Ireland, and Visit Wales’s first ever programme of cinema advertising in Germany. This broadcast advertising will be supported by a wide-ranging programme of digital promotion and activity & adventure magazine advertising.
Visit Wales and its regional partners will be flying the flag for adventure in Wales at the Telegraph Outdoor Adventure and Travel Show in London (11 – 14 February), and at the Caravan, Camping & Motorhome Show (23-28 February) in Birmingham.

Locations and activities which feature in the advert include sea kayaking off the Pembrokeshire Coast; Horse riding on the beach in Llangennith; family holidays in Nant Gwynant and climbing in Snowdonia and Festival No.6 in Portmeirion.  The TV advert features a fresh and contemporary view of Wales with graphic aerial images giving a stunning 90 degree birds eye view of Wales’ remarkable landscape.

The adverts were not only created by a Welsh production team Welsh but all talent featured in the ads were the practitioners who live and breathe what they do.
Ioan Doyle, a well-known climber and farmer in the Carneddau mountains also features in the advert.  Ioan has climbed some of the most challenging rock faces in the world and is considered among the best climbers in the UK.  He’s seen in the TV advert with another of our leading adventurers – Eric Jones.  Ioan has also been made an ambassador for the Year of Adventure and will work alongside Lowri Morgan, Tori James, Maria Leijerstam, Richard Parks and Bear Grylls during the year.

Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism, Ken Skates, said:

“Our aim with this first TV advert for 2016 is to position Wales as a leading destination for outdoor adventure and use our iconic destinations to inspire people to explore what our country has to offer.  2016 is to position Wales as a leading destination for outdoor adventure and use our iconic destinations to inspire people to explore what our country has to offer.  This is an amazing opportunity to showcase the best of our country. Wales is the true star of this advert.

“The Year of Adventure 2016 is really gathering momentum and we'll see the launch of the first event of the year later this week as Treasures: Adventures in Archaeology exhibition opens at National Museum Cardiff.”

Research shows that Visit Wales marketing has a real impact on the Welsh economy and generated £238m of additional spend in Wales in 2014.  This spend can be directly attributed to Visit Wales marketing activity.

The Year of Adventure campaign is the first phase of a new approach to marketing Wales in the UK and overseas and will be rolled out across all of our marketing work.   The Year of Adventure marketing will continue with a roadshow to key European  cities during the spring which will include Cologne. Munich and Paris.

The TV adverts will be shown for the first time on S4C during Pobol y Cwm at 20:12 and on ITV1 in target UK regions during Coronation Street at 19:45 in Wales and 20:45 in England.

The films and the wider year-long campaign are using the hash tags #FindYourEpic #GwladGwlad and to encourage visitors to share their experiences online.

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Channel website: http://gov.wales

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