What about the significant number of visitors, a lot of whom will be requiring accommodation, and places to eat, and buy their groceries.
I know a lot of the potential customers to such an attraction, would be day visitors, but many of the visitors to Zip World Bethesda are foreign tourists, drawn to the locality simply because of the existence of Europes longest zip wire.
They need somewhere to stay, and spend their money.
Most of the visitors to Zip World, did not drive a significant distance from the SE and abroad, to look at the nice views or walk the hills, they came because the longest Zip wire in Europe happened to be in a remote area of North Wales.
If only a small percentage of those visitors suddenly stopped, and said " what a beautiful part of the world, we had no idea it existed, let's stay longer"
Tourism is what both Cumbria and Snowdonia requires for their long term survival.
Its unlikely to happen, but what if overnight, nobody came to Windermere, Keswick, Kendal and the rest of the stunning national park.
Within a few years, the businesses would close, and those vital jobs, so reliant on tourism would be no more.
The main reason Gwynedd council and the WAG welcomed the project with open arms, is for the economic benefits it offered a deprived and run down area of Snowdonia.
Conwy and Gwynedd conucil have been forward thinking in setting up Surf Snowdonia in Dolgarrog, Zip World in both Bethesda and just outside Bettws Y Coed.
These attractions have received world wide recognition, and many new foreign visitors, who probably have never heard of Wales, have now shown up, to see what the country has to offer.
Even the Llechwedd slate caverns in Blaenau festiniog have created a massive underground trampoline experience.
That sounds extremely tacky, and down market, but every time ive driven up that hill towards the Crimea pass, during the summer months, that attraction car park is usually full to capacity.
Whether they spend their money in Blaenau Festioniog is another matter, but their money is entering the Welsh economy, and that is great for North Wales.
The tourism industry in Wales, is now the countries most lucrative industry, bringing in thousands of more visitors who would probably have stayed put in London.
Just because locals do not want it in their backyard, does not mean the project is dead in the water.
Cumbria will not survive without its ever increasing reliance on tourism and the money that represents.
Stunning scenery does not promise the local population any job security.
How many people born and bred in Cumbria, have had to move away, simply because there were no full time employment.
If North Wales is enjoying the economic benefits of increased tourism and spent revenue, why cannot the Lakes have a share of the cake.
