North Wales Tourist

The search is on for the people shaping the future of North Wales in the Daily Post Leaders Awards, developed with our friends at Bangor University.

This week we focus on the 10 tourism leaders nominated across the region who are helping our economy grow.

Sean Taylor, Zip World, Bounce Below

Sean’s ground breaking empire includes Tree Top Adventure, a woodland high ropes course, Bounce Below, the world’s first subterranean playground of its kind and the rapidly expanding portfolio of experiences that Zip World offer, including the fastest zip line in the world, the only four person zip line in the northern hemisphere and the largest fully underground zip line course in the world.

Having blown adventure tourism in North Wales to new proportions, he is now looking further afield at other sites around the UK as well as in South Africa and the Caribbean.

Chris Morton, Bodnant Food Centre

After helping to shape the vision for the pioneering centre of excellence, Chris Morton was appointed managing director of Bodnant Welsh Food, which was officially opened in 2012 by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall.

He now oversees a staff of 80 at the centre, which welcomes around 250, 000 visitors a year to its award-winning farm shop, tea room, restaurant, wine cellar, cookery school and farmhouse accommodation. Bodnant’s in-house dairy last month collected gold at the Royal Welsh Show for its cheese and also makes ice-cream and butter.

Previously Chris ran hotels, restaurants and an outside catering company before working as a business consultant for hotels, restaurants, leisure clubs and catering operations in Wales, across Europe, America and Asia.

Neil Rowlands, Treysgawen Hotel, Anglesey

Alongside this busy and challenging role he has also found time to help drive forward tourism on the island and beyond.