Surf Snowdonia back on its feet

The £12m Surf Snowdonia Adventure Parc will reopen its doors on Saturday 19 March after a five-month closure to address teething problems with its wave generation machinery.

Owners the Ainscough family said £1m was spent during the winter downtime to make the experimental Wavegarden technology more reliable.

Surf Snowdonia view from the hillNew facilities have also been added at the North Wales tourist attraction to appeal more widely to the family day-trip market including “a thrilling water-based ‘Crash & Splash’ obstacle course as well as a spectacular catapult ‘blob’. There will be guided stand-up paddleboard and kayak safaris on the River Conwy as well as enhanced glamping accommodation and catering facilities.”

Andy Ainscough, managing director of the Surf Snowdonia Adventure Parc, said: “We are massively excited about the 2016 season and we’re confident that our unique and expanded offer makes us the most compelling family adventure destination in the UK.

“We’ve invested in some really exciting new facilities like our Crash & Splash activity lagoon and our catapult blob which, as unlikely as it sounds, are the best fun you’re ever going to have being launched into the water.

“Our accommodation offer is looking brilliant with our super-comfortable glamping village right on the water’s edge, and we’ve sought out some of the best local producers in North Wales to help us deliver a fantastic menu selection for the Surf Side Café, Deli and Restaurant. The Surf Snowdonia Adventure Parc is a great place to come for a brilliant day out or short break for all ages, whether or not you want to get wet.”

A substantial portion of Surf Snowdonia’s new investment has been committed to optimising the mechanics and technical specification of its 300-metre world-first Wavegarden lagoon. The lagoon’s motors, which generate the longest man-made surfable waves on the planet, were beset by intermittent teething issues last season. They have undergone significant modification by manufacturer Leitner and rigorous independent testing over a period of six weeks.

Ainscough added: “The number one thing we wanted to get right during our winter downtime was the addressing the reliability of our Wavegarden, and we’re confident that we’ve delivered on that. Leitner has made some very specific modifications to the motors which have optimised the mechanics of creating consistently powerful waves, day in, day out. The last six weeks have been entirely dedicated to putting the motors through their paces and testing their resilience under pressure. We’re really pleased with how they have performed and it’s great to be going into the new season with that confidence.”

Surf Snowdonia has been listed as ‘one of the world’s hottest new experiences for 2016’ by influential travel journal Lonely Planet. The surf lagoon proved a major tourism draw for North Wales in 2015 with the surf lagoon booked at an average 97% occupancy in its short first season. High profile visitors including Larry Page, the founder of Google, and Nick Woodman, founder of GoPro.

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