Photo Credit: SpiritCymru
Special sleeping pods will be installed in a number of remote churches and chapels in Wales for use by cycling tourists. The SpiritCymru project is the brainchild of Ceredigion businessman James Lynch, who runs a sustainable holiday company. It is being launched as part of the Welsh Government’s Year of Discovery tourism campaign. The Church in Wales said that the scheme will “bring valuable support to struggling – even closed – rural churches by opening them up as accommodation for touring cyclists.”
The head of Property Services at the Church in Wales, Alex Glanville, said: “This is an exciting opportunity to work in partnership with fforest to find a new, innovative purpose for churches that have been closed. These buildings remain special places which will find a new audience through SpiritCymru.”
James Lynch commented: “We know that there are some 800 chapels and churches in the rural and coastal communities of Wales – many of which are facing an uncertain future. SpiritCymru will celebrate and promote the heritage values of these beautiful buildings and provide a new sustainable model for continued community engagement and use,”
The scheme has received financial backing from Welsh Government’s Tourism Product Innovation Fund and bookings are expected to open in the autumn.