Llandudno Pier

[DaveR]

You read it here first several weeks ago... 

£331,000 landing stage to be built at end of Llandudno Pier

Conwy County Borough Council in partnership with Six Piers Ltd has announced it will build a new £331,000 landing stage at the end of Llandudno pier in order to attract more tourists to the area.
 
The pier’s former landing stage fell into disrepair in 2006, but with a new landing stage constructed, boat cruises will be able to sail from the pier once again to attractions such as Puffin Island.  Work is set to start on The Dolphin Landing Stage in July and could be completed as early as October.
 
Jim Jones, section head for tourism at Conwy County Borough Council said:  “A new landing stage was a key priority within our Destination Conwy management plan, as we stood to gain much from opening up Llandudno to the sea.  We know there’s a lot of interest from cruise businesses wanting to come to Llandudno and visit other attractions throughout Conwy.  Of course, this comes as no surprise to us, especially as it comes on the back of Llandudno being voted a UK top ten destination in 2012 by Trip Advisor.”
 
Cllr Ronnie Hughes, Portfolio Holder for Tourism said: “This is great news for the Visitor Economy of Llandudno & Conwy County. We are grateful for the support of Gwynt y Môr Tourism Fund for their contribution, which is an excellent example of a partnership between the private and public sector.”
 
The Victorian pier at Llandudno, a Grade II listed building, was originally constructed in 1876.  An integral part of the resort, it is considered to be the finest surviving example of Victorian Piers in Great Britain, influencing both the tourist and retail economies in North Wales.
 
Gavin and Stacey actress Alison Steadman spoke of the demise of the landing stage at the pier in a recent BBC episode of Coming Home. Keen to see the Pier return to a busy port for boat trips, as she remembered it from a young age.
 
 
In response to the funding announcement, she said: “Great news that Llandudno is to have a new landing stage built on the pier! It will be wonderful to have access to all the local beauty spots and it will mean many more visitors for this great place that is so close to my heart.”
 
A landing stage was constructed at the seaward end of the pier in 1891 to provide berthing facilities for a wide range of pleasure vessels, including those offering services to the Isle of Man and trips to Puffin Island and Anglesey.  It was replaced with a concrete berthing platform in 1969, but was defunct by 2006 when the fendering frame fell into disrepair and became unsafe.
 
The new development would not be possible without the support of funding partners: Gwynt y Môr Tourism Fund, Conwy County Borough Council, Llandudno Town Council, and the Six Piers.
 
RWE npower renewables’ Gwynt y Môr Project Director, Toby Edmonds said: “We are delighted to be able to back tourism which, like the renewables industry, is so important to the economy of North Wales.”
 

[Merddin Emrys]

Excellent news at last!

[Ian48]

That's great!

However, I'm not that great with the technical terms, so when they say a 'dolphin', do they mean the whole of what I might call the landing stage, or just the wood and rubber buffers that were rotten?

If it's the former, then that's a big job! Hopefully we might get bigger ships than even the Balmoral and the Waverley back.

Nice that they got a quotation from Alison Steadman, bet she was surprised to get that call!

[Bri Roberts]

The pier’s former landing stage fell into disrepair in 2006, but with a new landing stage constructed, boat cruises will be able to sail from the pier once again to attractions such as Puffin Island.   

Excellent news except we want boat cruises to bring more visitors TO Llandudno and not take them FROM Llandudno

I also wish the press release could have indicated up to what size vessels will be able to use a £331K landing stage.

Will it simply be just the Waverley or Balmoral for one week a year?

[DaveR]

However, I'm not that great with the technical terms, so when they say a 'dolphin', do they mean the whole of what I might call the landing stage, or just the wood and rubber buffers that were rotten?

Dolphin is another name for Landing Stage. The wooden frame with rubber dampeners that sits on the side of the Landing Stage to absorb the impact of the ship as it docks is called the Fendering Framework.

The technical report is available to view here:
http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/43706/response/112658/attach/4/LLANDUDNO%20PIER%20FENDER%20REPORT%2009%2011%202009.pdf

[Ian48]

Well that's great then.

Holyhead has had a number of cruise ships call there since it was upgraded, so I imagine the same could happen in Llandudno. I don't mean to be offensive to Holyhead, but Llandudno would be a far more likely and attractive destination for cruise vessels, especially with the castle at Conwy close by.

I mean, if you stop at Holyhead, you have to travel the whole of the isle of Anglesey before you reach anywhere really worth seeing if you're a foreign tourist.

[Bri Roberts]

Will the landing stage be large enough to accommodate Cruise ships?

If so, up to what tonnage?

Is the depth of water off the pier deep enough?

Don't get me wrong, I think it will be wonderful if we could get the cruise ships currently berthing in Holyhead to come here instead but I am sceptical.

I have just read the Daily Post and Cllr Ronnie Hughes also mentions cruise ships coming to Llandudno.

Yorkie has experience of cruise ships.

I shall look forward to reading his observations.

[Ian48]

I would imagine the large one are too big as you say, but 'Hebridean Princess'-size would be good I think.

[DaveR]

What used to happen was that a smaller ship would act as a tender to transport passengers to/from the Cruse Ship to the Landing Stage.

[Bri Roberts]

Dave, tendering is fine in the Med but even then ports of call are often missed because of rough seas.

Personally, I cannot see tendering becoming an accepted practice at Llandudno by the cruise industry.

Ian48, Hebridean Princess is a possibility but it is 2,112 tons and only has 30 cabins.

I am afraid that is not big enough to fill even a red HOHO bus.

Yorkie recently went on Braemar which is 23,000 tons and has 377 cabins.

A few weeks ago, we were on Azura and that was 116,000 tons and had 1,546 cabins.

This year, the Port of Holyhead has Caribbean Princess visiting twice and that ship is 112,000 tons and has 1,557 cabins

What we could do with is a local company doing daily trips to the Isle of Man and Liverpool.

[DaveR]

Dave, tendering is fine in the Med but even then ports of call are often missed because of inclement weather.

Personally, I cannot see tendering becoming an accepted practice at Llandudno by the cruise industry.

There's unfortunately really no other option, as the water isn't deep enough at the Pierhead for the large cruise ships to dock (they need about 10.5m of water minimum).

What we could do with is a local company doing daily trips to the Isle of Man and Liverpool.

That's a great idea. Funnily enough, I was talking to someone about that only yesterday.... 

[Ian48]

With regards to the Caribbean Princess at Holyhead, it says clearly on this link that "all passengers" are transported ashore using launches.

Would that not be the same as Dave was thinking for Llandudno?

http://www.princess.com/find/excursion/exlistfordestination.page?portid=HLY&t=R&exType=S

[Bri Roberts]

Perhaps, the ship anchors in the harbour at Holyhead and thus sheltered from the worst of the weather.

Am I correct in thinking all that is actually happening is the present landing stage (aka berthing platform) at the end of the pier is having its damaged fenders replaced at a cost of £331K rather than a brand new landing stage as announced in the press release?

What a shame the funds for the repair could not have come from another source, such as the Welsh Government, rather than coming from the company that will be building Gwynt y Mor and ruining the wonderful view out in the bay?

[Quiggs]

I recently sailed on the 'Caribbean Princess', they have six tenders which are used for shore excursions when they are unable to dock, but they are very dependent on the sea conditions being favourable. Mooring off Llandudno bay may leave them open to changing weather conditions. 

[Craigydonian]

Liners have anchored in the bay before, the most notable being the Kungsholm of the now defunct Swedish America Line which used to visit regularly until one year a storm blew up and it wasn't possible to get the passengers back on board! Having said that I was on an Eastern Mediterranean cruise recently when we were tendered ashore at Santorini in very choppy seas without problem. So all in all I think that on most occasions tendering from ships anchored half a mile off the North Shore will for the most part be quite feasible.
I'm also aware that approaches have been made to certain cruise lines who have expressed a keen interest in coming to Llandudno - so watch this space.
The full story is in tomorrow's Weekly News!