Eurovision Liverpool: Boost for north Wales businesses

About 100,000 people are expected to descend on Merseyside for the event in May

North Wales businesses could benefit from the "ripple effect" of Liverpool hosting Eurovision, officials say.

The event is set to bring 100,000 people to Merseyside in May and much of the area's accommodation is booked up or expensive.

One Welsh hotel said it had seen a rise in bookings after promoting itself as a place to stay during the competition.

The Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) claimed there would be jobs for Welsh people too.

But the real opportunity lies in the "long-term" project of ensuring visitors to north-west England also spend time over the border, according to an expert on tourism marketing.

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Elizabeth Mason, events manager at the Beaches Hotel in Prestatyn, Denbighshire, said she hoped people's money would go further if they based themselves in north Wales, so they could extend their stay.

"With us being just a little bit away, there isn't that necessity to go extortionately, raising rates and things like that, so people can afford to stay a little bit longer rather than just popping up for the night.

"I think it's quite a big opportunity because when you look at hospitality, with people coming from different countries, north Wales doesn't pull a lot.

"Everybody wants to go down to Cardiff and nobody knows that north Wales exists.

"It's great to have something as important as this up in the north Wales borders."

Elizabeth Mason hopes people will book accommodation in Wales so that they can afford to stay longer

The UK is hosting Eurovision on behalf of last year's winners, Ukraine, but Wales' capital declined to make a bid to host it.

That accolade went to Liverpool and on Wednesday 1,500 people attended a jobs fair at the conference centre next to the M&S Bank Arena where the competition will be held.

Linda Usher from the DWP said Wales would feel the "two ripple effects" of job opportunities and a boost for the hospitality sector.

"We'll have customers coming in from Wales to work in the Eurovision event but also you've got the hotels, hospitality sectors, in north Wales itself," she said.

"So economically we'll have [a boost] both in Merseyside and Wales, and once they go to Wales you're hoping they'll go back to Wales, so it's not just the Eurovision itself."

Some hotels in north-east Wales are reporting low availability around the weekend of 13 May, but it is in the long term they can truly benefit, according to an academic from Bangor University who specialises in marketing.

The UK's Sam Ryder finished second to Ukraine in the 2022 contest

Dr Llyr Roberts believes the increased exposure for Liverpool will bring more visitors to the city, who could be persuaded to come to Wales.

"Hopefully it's in the longer term that we'll see the real benefit as more and more people come to north-west England and hopefully realise that they can come over the border as well," he said.

Welsh influencer Iwan Steffan, who is based in Liverpool and shares his life with 100,000 followers on TikTok, is hoping to get some work from Eurovision.

"I hadn't realised just how big an event it is," he said.

"There's going to be an Eurovision village, there's going to be Eurovision streets, there's going to be so many different things going on and it will be brilliant."

He is eyeing a place in the arena, but if that does not work out, he hopes to share a taste of the city with his followers.

Influencer Iwan Steffan hopes to get some work during the Eurovision event in Liverpool

The Welsh government said it was working with VisitBritain and Eurovision 2023 to "maximise the economic benefits" of having the event "on our doorstep".

It added: "As well as encouraging visitors to extend their Eurovision trip in Liverpool and visit Wales as well in May, Visit Wales will be making the most of future opportunities that arise from the increased awareness of what the UK and Wales in particular, can offer to visitors."