Promoting Wales to international tourists

The Welsh government is keen to promote Welsh tourism because tourism contributes directly £2.7 billion (8%) to the Welsh economy and 12.7% of employment in Wales. Acknowledging the strategic importance of tourism, Welsh government is constantly seeking advice and consultation on relevant issues, such as how to best promote Wales to international tourists and whether local authorities should be allowed to enact a visitor tax.

Our research speaks directly to the Welsh government’s call to boost tourism. We suggest the Welsh government and relevant stakeholders in the tourism sector brand Wales as the land of dragons and legends in order to maximize its appeal to international tourists. This will help Wales tap into its unique cultural and historical heritage, while capitalise on being one of the only two countries in the world that has a dragon on its national flag. At a company level, it will help individual tourism and hospitality businesses to increase their business revenues from tourists.

Our work has been received and published by the Welsh Select Committee and we gave evidence to Parliament in July 2022. Watch it here.

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Meet the Principal Investigator(s) for the project

Dorothy Yen
Dorothy Yen - Professor Dorothy A. Yen is a Professor of Marketing. As Deputy Dean of Brunel Business School at Brunel University London, I lead the School’s internationalisation and student recruitment strategies. My academic work is grounded in a consumer-centric social marketing approach, through which I explore key issues in marketing, branding, and tourism. My research focuses on how culture shapes human behaviour across both B2B and B2C contexts. I am particularly interested in cross-cultural business relationships, with a focus on how culture-specific factors influence collaboration, trust, and relationship dynamics. I apply these insights to understand consumer behaviour among various groups, including visitors, migrants, sojourners, older adults, and businesses. My proposal to brand Wales as the “land of dragons and legends” gained national attention and sparked public debate, following my appearance before the Welsh Affairs Committee and an interview with BBC Radio Wales. I also lead the Happy to Chat initiative—now established as a charity—which promotes social connection within communities and wider society. The project seeks to reduce loneliness and social isolation by encouraging open conversations and meaningful interactions in public spaces. Office Hours: Wednesdays, 2:00–4:00 PM. Appointments outside these hours can also be arranged by email, either on campus or via Microsoft Teams.

Partnering with confidence

Organisations interested in our research can partner with us with confidence backed by an external and independent benchmark: The Knowledge Exchange Framework. Read more.


Project last modified 12/10/2023